Police say a young driver risked killing other motorists as he evaded police at high speed near Mosgiel yesterday.
A man in his early 20s allegedly drove a 1991 Nissan Skyline at more than 100kmh while overtaking another vehicle, as a third car approached in the opposite lane.
The Nissan spun out of control into a ditch and the driver of the oncoming vehicle had to brake hard to avoid a collision, leaving skid marks stretching more than 100m along State Highway 87, police said.
''We are lucky we are not dealing with a fatal [crash], given the speed and the way he crossed the centre line, completely out of control. An aggravating factor is the poor condition of his vehicle, which had a non-operation order for being unroadworthy,'' Acting Sergeant Reece Munro said.
The incident happened just before 3pm on the Outram-Mosgiel road (SH87) near the Tirohanga Rd intersection.
Police arrested the Nissan driver, the only person in the car, and charged him with failing to stop for police and dangerous driving.
Acting Sgt Munro said a police patrol travelling in the opposite direction towards Mosgiel had followed the Nissan and signalled the driver to stop.
But he ''heavily accelerated'' and overtook another vehicle ''at speeds in excess of 100kmh'', narrowly avoiding a collision with an oncoming vehicle in the opposite lane, Acting Sgt Munro said.
''It was a very close call and it could have been a lot worse.''
