Joy ride comes to crashing halt

The crumpled remains of the black Commodore.

By Mitchell Clarke

An elderly Pakenham woman is lucky to be alive after a group of hoons allegedly sped through a red light and crashed into her vehicle at speed.

Police attempted to intercept a black Holden Commodore sedan, which was seen speeding north of McGregor Road in the early hours of Saturday morning, 7 March.

It’s understood the vehicle, which was unregistered, sped away which forced police to give up the chase.

A short time later, it’s alleged the vehicle drove through a red traffic light at the intersection of Princes Highway and McGregor Road, colliding head on with a white Holden Commodore.

That vehicle was being driven by the 71-year-old Pakenham woman, who was the sole occupant.

Remarkably, she was taken to hospital in a stable condition with minor injuries.

Witnesses have described the scene as “absolute carnage” and said it was a miracle there were no fatalities.

The offending driver, a 19-year-old Sunshine man, was conveyed to hospital under police guard with non-life threatening injuries.

An air ambulance was dispatched to the scene to airlift the front seat passenger, a 16-year-old Pakenham boy who had received serious injuries, to hospital under police guard.

Pakenham Road Rescue Unit, which comprises of Pakenham SES and Nar Nar Goon CFA, used hydraulic tools to free the passenger who was extensively trapped by his feet.

It’s understood both men were expected to be interviewed for a number of traffic offences.

Three passengers in the back seat, two 17-year-old Pakenham girls and a 16-year-old Pakenham girl received minor injuries and were released pending further enquiries.

The arrests form part of Operation Arid, a four-day focus to keep the community safe on the roads during the Labour Day long weekend.

The state-wide operation aims to reduce road trauma and involves all available personnel including local road policing units, general duties, other operational policing units and centralised resources from the road policing command.

It’s not believed the driver has been charged yet, with a spokesperson Victoria Police’s media unit stating there are no updates and the investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone who witnessed the collision or who has dashcam footage is being urged to come forward.