Hutt Valley Area Commander, Inspector Wade Jennings:

Hutt Valley and Kapiti-Mana Police have pulled the handbrake on a gathering of anti-social road users.

Twenty-one vehicles have been ordered off the road and nearly 80 infringement notices issued, following a large and volatile gathering last night.

Police intercepted about 100 vehicles at Kmart Petone, forcing every vehicle to pass through a checkpoint. The anti-social road users then met in Porirua, where they were met by more Police staff, and then faced another checkpoint after relocating to Seaview.

On Eastern Hutt Road in Taita, Police confronted about 80 bystanders who were blocking the road and throwing bottles. Police formed lines with shields and helmets and forced the crowd to return to their vehicles, which were then directed through another checkpoint.

We know the public, and certainly Police, won’t tolerate this dangerous behaviour, and participants can expect to be stopped and to face enforcement action.

One of the vehicles involved in the gathering lost control on State Highway 2, breaking through a metal barrier and crashing onto the railway lines. Incredibly, the two occupants were not seriously hurt.

For Police, this was a successful night that prevented significant damage to our local roads and disruption to the community, thanks to the work of frontline Police and a number of people working in the background to support them.

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