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17-05-2012, 05:37am
Victorian Police have been accused of using motorists as "human shields" after footage emerged of a learner driver's car being rammed from behind after he was ordered to stop directly in the path of a car fleeing police.
Madhawa Mapa, 17, was returning from a driving lesson with his mother when a highway patrol officer ordered them to stop their car in the middle of the Hume Freeway near Benalla on Saturday morning.
Mobile phone footage obtained by the Nine Network shows the moment of impact which violently jolted the pair's car forward, leaving the rear quarter crumpled.
The mother and son were uninjured but were critical of police for putting them in harm's way.
"It's unacceptable for the police to do that because our lives were put at risk," Madhawa said.
"He could have easily killed us."
The driver of the stolen car reportedly reached speeds of up to 200km/h.
He was arrested after the vehicle crashed into a wall following collisions with four other vehicles stopped on the freeway.
Madhawa said he had no idea what was going on and he was trembling with fear after the crash.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay said the methods used that day were not standard operating procedure.
"To be perfectly frank, the circumstances that have been described to me in no way shape or form conform to our policy," the Commissioner said.
He has ordered an investigation into the incident.
Source: Nine News.
Author: Martin Zavan. Approving editor: Matthew Henry.
Madhawa Mapa, 17, was returning from a driving lesson with his mother when a highway patrol officer ordered them to stop their car in the middle of the Hume Freeway near Benalla on Saturday morning.
Mobile phone footage obtained by the Nine Network shows the moment of impact which violently jolted the pair's car forward, leaving the rear quarter crumpled.
The mother and son were uninjured but were critical of police for putting them in harm's way.
"It's unacceptable for the police to do that because our lives were put at risk," Madhawa said.
"He could have easily killed us."
The driver of the stolen car reportedly reached speeds of up to 200km/h.
He was arrested after the vehicle crashed into a wall following collisions with four other vehicles stopped on the freeway.
Madhawa said he had no idea what was going on and he was trembling with fear after the crash.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay said the methods used that day were not standard operating procedure.
"To be perfectly frank, the circumstances that have been described to me in no way shape or form conform to our policy," the Commissioner said.
He has ordered an investigation into the incident.
Source: Nine News.
Author: Martin Zavan. Approving editor: Matthew Henry.