A reckless taxi driver, who tried to drive over cops at a roadblock in Ottery, is behind bars after a dramatic car chase on Friday.
Grassy Park Police Station commander, Colonel Dawood Laing, says the speedster drove like the “devil was behind him” as he jumped robots, refusing to stop.
Laing saw police and Law Enforcement officers getting a skrik when they tried to pull the driver over for a routine stop, but instead he accelerated towards them in an attempt to knock them over.
“It was a joint operation with Law Enforcement on Friday where they tried to pull the taxi over at 7am,” he explains.
“But he just refused to stop and nearly hit them as he accelerated. The determined officers jumped in their vehicles and gave chase after the driver as, at that stage, they had no idea why he was behaving like that.”
‘APPLAUD’: Dawood Laing.
Laing says during the chase down Strandfontein Road, the driver of a white Toyota Quantum jumped robots, endangering other motorists and pedestrians.
Law Enforcement spokesperson, Wayne Dyason, says the 52-year-old driver then drove on the shoulder of the road, almost causing several accidents.
He was arrested in the Fezeka informal settlement and taken to Grassy Park SAPS where he faces six charges including endangering the lives of cops and the public.
“When they checked his record, they found that the unlicensed driver has warrants totalling R19 400 for various charges including reckless and negligent driving,” says Laing.
“He was also out on bail for causing an accident in Wynberg where the damages caused were over R29 000.
“He really drove like the devil was behind him and now we can see why. I applaud the SAPS and Law Enforcement officers for ensuring that he does not escape again and we will not tolerate such lawlessness on our roads.”