Honda CR-V driver leads police on wild chase, road spikes deployed, fake machine gun seized

Early editions of the Honda CR-V – one of the pioneers of the family-SUV segment – had a picnic table under the boot floor, nestled above the spare tyre.

But police in NSW got a lot more than they bargained for when had a look inside a stolen Honda CR-V after it was involved in a pursuit in the state's north-west.

Instead of a plastic fold-away table they uncovered a fake machine gun – and that was only the start of the story behind the pursuit, which ended after the Honda CR-V had its tyres spiked twice before finally coming to a stop.

NSW Police reported that about 5:50pm on Wednesday 16 August 2023 officers from the Armidale highway patrol division were patrolling the New England Highway near Armidale after reports a vehicle had failed to pay for fuel in the town of Guyra.

"Police detected the vehicle travelling at speed and stopped it," a statement from NSW Police said.

"As police approached the vehicle it accelerated away and a pursuit was initiated.

"The pursuit continued for some time where road spikes were successfully deployed twice.

"During the pursuit, the female passenger stood up through the sunroof to film police.

"The vehicle eventually came to a stop after driving on four rims for some distance."

Police said the driver, a 32-year-old male from Queensland, and the passenger, a 24-year-old female, were both arrested and charged with numerous offences.

Police said both alleged offenders were refused bail to appear at Armidale Local Court the next day.

"The driver tested positive to methamphetamine," the police statement continued.

"A search of the vehicle was conducted with police locating an imitation firearm. Investigations revealed the vehicle was stolen from Currumbin (in Queensland) earlier that day."

Police said the driver was charged with:

Police said the passenger was charged with: