Cops chase 200km/h motorist

2003-12-17 08:54

Pietermaritzburg - Traffic officers chased a speeding motorist for nearly 50km on Tuesday as he reached speeds of up to 200km/h before being pulled over at Athlone traffic circle in Pietermaritzburg.

The drama started when a gold Audi Quatro Turbo, driven by Johannesburg building contractor Thabo Mbunda, 29, shot through a speed trap near Mooi River doing 174km/h.

Road Traffic Inspectorate spokesperson Colin Govender said officers tried to flag him down but he didn't stop, so they gave chase and radioed their colleagues trapping near Tweedie to stop him.

At Tweedie, Mbunda was doing 200km/h and again failed to pull over and the chase continued with four cars in pursuit.

At the Hilton off-ramp, Mbunda left the freeway and continued speeding down the dangerous, twisting Old Howick Road.

At the bottom, traffic officers, alerted to the drama, managed to finally halt him, after a 30-minute dash.

Asked what reason he had for driving so fast, Mbunda said he was rushing his ill wife to hospital, so traffic officers called his bluff and summoned paramedics to examine her.

They found her to be in good health, although she said she thought she might be two to three months pregnant. She refused to be taken to hospital.

Mbunda was arrested and taken back to Mooi River Police Station, where he was charged for speeding, defeating the ends of justice and failing to stop. He was granted R1 500 bail and will appear in the Mooi River magistrate's court on Wednesday.

- The Witness