Driver allegedly tried to hide from police after car crash

After causing a car crash that sent another person to hospital, the driver responsible for the collision fled the scene and was found hiding in a nearby backyard, police allege.

Police were working at Sulwood Drive on Wednesday afternoon (30 April) when they allegedly saw a Hyundai i30 speeding at 99 km/h in an 80 km/h zone, an ACT Policing spokesperson said.

While the officers directed the driver to stop, they allegedly drove away.

The police were allegedly so concerned about the driver’s behaviour, they disengaged from a pursuit due to the risk to public safety.

A short time later, police heard the Hyundai and a Nissan X-Trail had crashed on Summerland Circuit in Kambah.

It was alleged the two women who had been in the Hyundai fled the scene before police arrived, while the driver of the Nissan was injured and had to be transported to hospital.

The two women were allegedly found hiding from police in the front yards of homes on Gallagher Street and Bellingham Crescent.

One of them, 22-year-old P-plater Isobel Rachel Mazey, is alleged to have been driving the Hyundai.

She was charged with failing to stop for police, not stopping and giving assistance after an accident causing injury, speeding, not displaying P-plates, reckless driving and negligent driving.

Her lawyer, Paul Edmonds, applied for her to be granted bail in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday (1 May), saying she was clearly still a young adult and had long-standing ties to Canberra.

He said while she had an unresolved issue with drug use, the mere fact someone used an illicit substance didn’t automatically mean they posed an unacceptable risk for bail.

Any risk could be dealt with by strict conditions, he argued.

The prosecutor, who opposed bail, argued Mazey had “a propensity to flee and hide from police”.

She alleged that in addition to putting the community at risk, she put herself at risk by taking drugs and driving a vehicle.

Magistrate Amy Begley said police arrived to find both the Hyundai and the Nissan significantly damaged.

She also alleged Mazey tested positive to illicit substances.

The magistrate said she had significant concerns about the likelihood of her reoffending and refused bail.

Mazey was then seen putting her head in her hands.

She did not enter pleas to her charges. The matter was adjourned to 6 May.