From RCIPS: Mon, Sep 26, 2016 at 4:02 PM

Further to the holding statement below regarding this incident released this weekend, please find the following information:

Late Friday evening, 23 September, officers conducted a traffic operation on Esterley Tibbetts Highway with the objective of enforcing traffic laws and detecting motorists driving under the influence. During the course of this operation, two motorists were arrested for driving under the influence while ten others were ticketed for traffic offences.

Around 12:10AM early Saturday morning, one vehicle, a Nissan Primera, approached the checkpoint, but did not stop. Officers followed the vehicle and activated their emergency lights. The vehicle pulled over to the shoulder initially, but once officers began to exit their police vehicle, the driver drove off. Police then followed the vehicle, which was traveling at a speed of approximately 35 mph. However, when the vehicle came upon traffic along West Bay road, it pulled into the turning lane and suddenly accelerated to a very fast speed. A short distance up the road, in the vicinity of the Queens Court complex, the Nissan collided into the back of a white Mercedes Benz SUV, which then collided into a CUC pole.

Three people were in the Nissan, and two people were in the Mercedes. Members of the public helped police remove the passengers from the Nissan, which had caught fire. All five people sustained injuries in the accident and were administered emergency First Aid by police and emergency personnel. Two were admitted to the hospital: the passenger in the Mercedes was released from hospital today, while the 21-year-old driver of the Nissan underwent surgery on Saturday and is still in the hospital in stable condition.

The incident is under police investigation.

“It is unlawful not to obey a police signal to stop, whether it be at a police checkpoint, by a police vehicle with the use of emergency lights and siren, or by a police officer in uniform,” said Kurt Walton, Chief Superintendent. “We need everyone to take responsibility for road safety.”

From RCIPS Sat, Sep 24, 2016

This morning Saturday 24th of September 2016 at around 12:30 am police and emergency services responded to a two vehicle collision in the vicinity of the Queen’s Court on West Bay Road. Five persons received injuries as a result of the accident, however none of the injuries were life threatening. One of the vehicles involved in the collision caught on fire, but was extinguished by the Fire Department. The matter is under investigation by the RCIPS.