Guilty pleas over boyracer incident
The driver at the centre of a high profile boyracer run from the police had only been out of prison for a few weeks at the time.
Jessie Charles Ormandy, 22, has now pleaded guilty to all charges and remains in prison for sentencing in June. He withdrew a not guilty plea he had indicated at an earlier appearance.
Police said Ormandy sped off through a red light when he was spotted in Deans Avenue in a car that had been unlawfully taken from the Northland shopping centre the day before.
They say he lost control of the vehicle at the roundabout nearby, struck the kerb and damaged a police car that manoeuvred to block him in.
Prosecutor Sergeant Dave Murray said the police were seeking payment for the damage to the two vehicles, after Ormandy’s guilty pleas in the Christchurch District Court today.
Ormandy has done all of a four-year eight-month prison term for aggravated robbery and presenting a firearm. He was declined parole five times during the sentence.
He was released from prison on November 26 and within five weeks he was charged with assault and released on bail. He was still on bail when he took a woman’s car from the shopping centre on January 4, using a modified set of keys, and got into the car-chase incident early the next morning.
Sergeant Murray said the car was approached because of its speed on Bealey Avenue, but accelerated off when the police patrol used its lights and siren. He said Ormandy reached an estimated 120km an hour and “showed no concern for the safety of other vehicles”.
The assault had occurred a few days before when Ormandy was in Riccarton with a group of associates. When two women had a fight, the assault victim intervened. Ormandy took exception to what he did and pushed him down before kicking him five or six times in the body and head. He was left with soreness to his body and behind his right ear.
Ormandy has been in custody since his arrest. He tried to make his own bail application but it was refused when police and probation opposed his release, since he had already been on bail at the time of the boyracer incident.
Judge Gary MacAskill delayed entering convictions because of a request for him to continue courses he has been doing while in prison on remand. Ormandy will be sentenced on June 17. The judge has asked for pre-sentence reports to cover the issue of his suitability for home detention, and his ability to pay for the damage.
Ormandy admitted charges of assault with intent to injure, unlawfully taking a $9000 car, reckless driving, failing to stop for the police, and driving while forbidden.
The incident led to motel owners voicing complaints about the noise and commotion from continuing boyracer activity in the area at the weekends.
Category: Focus
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
Connect
Connect with us via: