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Home / Investigation Reports & Media / 2025-summaries-of-police-investigations

Canterbury officer’s actions reviewed after following a motorcycle that later crashed

26 September 2025

The Authority oversaw a Police investigation into an allegation that an officer pursued a motorcycle for approximately two kilometres before the rider lost control and crashed at a roundabout. The rider was initially thought to have life-threatening injuries but was later discharged from hospital uninjured.

The officer had spotted the rider weaving in and out of traffic and signalled them to stop. The rider did not stop, and the officer decided to follow, but did not announce his intentions over the radio. The officer continued to follow the rider to ensure they were aware they were required to stop, but the rider crashed the motorcycle while negotiating a roundabout.

Police reviewed CCTV footage and elected to undertake an employment process. However, there was some miscommunication with the Authority about the nature of this process.

While the Authority agrees with the outcome of this process, we were not provided an opportunity to comment prior to the discussions with the officer involved. This was contrary to the agreed protocols between Police and the Authority and limited our ability to oversee the employment process.

IPCA: 24-25779

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