It is becoming common these days for cars to be fitted with alarm systems that include GPS trackers, and one of these has allegedly caught out a Pakuranga towing company.
Police have charged Michael Woods, who runs East City Towing under the name Mike Holliday, with unlawful conversion of a motor vehicle.
The prosecution follows an incident after a member of the public complained that her car was driven at high speeds after it was towed by East City Towing for ‘boy racing’ activities in Mt Wellington.
The Snitch GPS system in the Nissan Silvia registered the car’s movements after towing, including being driven around Ben Lomond Crescent at speeds of more than 100km/h, returning to the towing lot, and then being driven up Cascade Road at more than 100km/h.
It goes without saying that these speeds were in areas where the posted limits are 50km/h and 60 km/h. The maximum speed of the vehicle was logged as 113km/h.
East City Towing has also been removed from the police’s on-call towing roster until further notice, while conversion of a vehicle or other conveyance can be punishable with up to seven years’ imprisonment if the defendant is convicted.
