WAGGA'S top cop has seen how badly intercepting road chases can go.
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Defending the decisions made by police to terminate the chase on several occasions, as a Nissan X-Trail tore through southern NSW at speeds of up to 200km/h, Wagga Local Area Commander Superintendent Bob Noble said officers were focused on not making a dangerous situation even more perilous.
"Police don't want to contribute to making the situation even more dangerous," he said.
"They've got to balance out the benefit of pursuing the vehicle (against) the potential catastrophic cost of an accident should it occur."
Reflecting on his last experience trying to stop a speeding car, through deploying road spikes, Superintendent Noble said stopping a car chase had the potential to go very wrong.
"The officers were placed in grave danger and very lucky not to be killed, while the occupants of the offending vehicle were very seriously injured," he said of the incident.
"This was on a very quiet and isolated bitumen country road - the environment we're talking (on Wednesday) would've been much more densely trafficked and populated."
Last night police were still on the hunt for the X-Trail involved in Wednesday's dramatic chase, with the last unconfirmed sighting of the vehicle made in Canowindra, near Cowra, late on Wednesday.
"They've got to balance out the benefit of pursuing the vehicle (against) the potential catastrophic cost of an accident should it occur."
- Superintendent Bob Noble, Wagga LAC
It has emerged the vehicle involved in the chase was stolen from a property in Queensland sometime between 11pm on Sunday and 5.30am on Monday.
The three occupants of the X-Trail led police on a wild chase that reached speeds of up to 200km/h that started in Benalla at 10.30am on Wednesday before speeding up the Hume Freeway to Albury and refuelling without paying at Lake Hume.
It then continued northwards through Wagga, pursued by police, before officers terminated the chase due to dangerous conditions as it fled Wagga on the Coolamon Road.
It's believed there were the X-Trail had three occupants - two males and a female.
A number of objects were thrown from the vehicle as it was pursued by police, which have been seized for forensic examination.
Superintendent Noble said it had been a miracle nobody had been injured as a result of the X-Trail's wild and erratic driving.
"To be driving in an unlawful and dangerous way for that period of time, it's a wonder that car didn't leave the road or collide with another vehicle," he said.
"It's quite stunning no one was injured but I'm very pleased no one was."
