A pregnant woman fooled police she was in labour after the car she was in was stopped for speeding - and discharged herself from hospital immediately after arriving.
Tauranga police were ready to lay road spikes to stop the car on the Kaimai Range. But after managing to flag it down they found the 23-year-old woman in the passenger seat with her feet on the dashboard claiming to be giving birth.
Officers arranged an ambulance but the woman, who was late-term, discharged herself moments after arriving at Tauranga Hospital.
She stepped into a waiting car with two people inside - and it promptly a ran a red light.
"I think she's tried using her pregnancy to put a smokescreen to give some justification for the driver's actions," Acting Senior Sergeant Mark Holmes said.
"Saying 'I'm having a baby', she's just using that to her advantage."
The woman was the passenger in a Honda Civic that was clocked at more than 146kmh on State Highway 29.
The driver allegedly ignored police signals to pull over, prompting police to consider laying road spikes to stop him as he drove down the Kaimais about 9am.
However, after being flagged down, the driversaid his friend was in labour.
The police officer called for an ambulance and part of the road was cordoned off as medical help arrived.
But later staff from the hospital called police asking if they knew where the woman had gone after she had discharged herself.
"It's not just a waste of our time but a waste of the time of St John ambulance staff helping people who really need their help."
He said the woman was seven and a-half months pregnant.
A 23-year-old Mt Maunganui man who is a driver by occupation was arrested for dangerous driving-related charges. He has already lost his licence for 28 days.
