GO AD-FREE. Get 2 Months Digital Subscription for ONLY £1! Use code 2FOR1
GET STARTEDMore on KentOnline
GO AD-FREE. Get 2 Months Digital Subscription for ONLY £1! Use code 2FOR1
GET STARTEDMore on KentOnline
A stinger used by officers to apprehend two suspects unintentionally brought an innocent driver to a screeching halt, as the device punctured all four tyres of her vehicle.
Police chased an Audi which failed to stop when requested on Tuesday after midnight and later arrested a 25-year-old from Deal and a 29-year-old from Merseyside on suspicion of drug offences - but it appears they left and forgot to pick up the stinger.
Lisa, who declined to give her surname, was travelling along the A256 from Thanet towards Sandwich with her partner just before 1am when the Land Rover suddenly became difficult to control and they had to stop near the roundabout next to the Discovery Park.
The resident, who lives near Sandwich, took to Instagram to express her frustration with Kent Police after they investigated and realised what had happened.
She wrote: "Thanks @KentPoliceUK you forgot to pick up stingers on the road near Sandwich, now I have no tyres.
"Nor do the others that went over it. Cheers for that."
In a follow up post showing a picture of the Land Rover loaded onto a recovery truck, she added: "So @KentPoliceUK how many stingers were deployed on the roads and you forgot?
"Tyres, damage and no car until repaired. As for police comment 'can't you fit the spare'...hmm let me think...1 spare 4 destroyed tyres...fuming!"
It is understood another car many also have been damaged as a result of the stingers being left on the road.
A Kent Police spokesman said: "At 12.35am on Tuesday, October 20, an Audi failed to stop for officers when requested to do so on the A256 south of Ramsgate.
"A pursuit was authorised and officers deployed and retracted a stinger on the A256 near Richborough, leading to the vehicle being stopped in Cater Road near Eastry.
"A 29-year-old man from the Merseyside area and a 25-year-old man from the Deal area were arrested on suspicion of drugs offences.
"Kent Police has since been contacted by two members of the public concerning possible damage to their vehicles allegedly caused as a result of the stinger's deployment and the circumstances are currently being reviewed."
