Magistrate dubs extreme speedster Tarelle Power-Williams ‘most dangerous person in the state’

The speed this L-Plater was clocked at was so fast a magistrate has labelled him “the most dangerous person in the state” – and it’s not the first time he’s been busted.

An extreme speedster who was clocked at 253km/h was likely the “most dangerous person in the state for the minutes that he was driving”, a court has heard.

Tarelle Lewis Charles Power-Williams, 20, was on his L-plates when he was detected speeding at 253km/h/h in the 110km/h zone on the North South Motorway at Waterloo Corner on January 30 in an unregistered black Holden ute. As a learner driver, he was only permitted to be driving at 100km/h.

The court heard he had been found 2km further along the road because his gearbox blew up from over revving

He appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday to hear sentencing submissions for a number of charges to which he had pleaded guilty, including an earlier charge of extreme speed where he had driven dangerously for 18 minutes through the northern suburbs, including through red lights on the wrong side of the road.

Tarelle Power-Williams. Picture: Supplied (Facebook/Instagram)

Tarelle Power-Williams was clocked at 253km/h on the North-South Motorway. Picture: Supplied (Facebook/Instagram)

Andrew Williams, for Power-Williams’ said his client had been frank with police about his extreme speed telling them he “acted like a d***head”.

He said on the earlier occasion of speeding, Power-Williams career criminal father had been his passenger. He said a psychological report had indicated Power-Williams, a father of two, had a dysfunctional upbringing marred by his parents’ drug abuse to which he had become desensitised.

“He’s ashamed of what he did, it’s very risky behaviour,” Mr Williams said.

“He simply took those risks without considering the consequences … he’s a bit shocked at the speed really.”

Magistrate Ben Sale said Power-Williams’ appeared to have “no regard for his safety or anybody else safety” and his driving included aggressively moving across three lanes of peak-hour traffic at speed.

“On the occasions that he was driving in the fashions I’ve heard, he was probably the most dangerous person in the state for the minutes that he was driving.”

“This is not just being, as he has described it – a d***head, but this seems to be offending which often only ends up in one way if he keeps doing it – that he will kill himself or he will kill somebody else.

The black Holden ute was located 2km further along after the gearbox blew up. Picture: SA Police.

Barossa Highway Patrols clocked the black Holden ute on the North South Motorway. Picture: SA Police.

Tarelle Power-Williams was detected driving at 253km/h on the North-South Motorway in January. Picture: Supplied (Facebook/Instagram)

“Does he simply not care about his own life or the lives of others? That’s what troubles me, his attitude towards those offences.”

Mr Sale questioned whether the risky behaviour was Powell-Williams’ idea of fun.

He said while Power-Williams had been frank with police when he had been caught for his various offences – which also included petrol theft, breaches of bail, escaping a police pursuit and driving unregistered – he was “usually caught fairly red-handed”.

He said it appears Power-Williams was “going to be a risk to the community for many years to come”.

Lorne Matthews, prosecuting, urged the court to disqualify Power-Williams “until further order for not less than five years” and a term of imprisonment.

He also asked the court to formally forfeit the black ute Power-Williams was driving at the time of the extreme speeding offence.

Mr Sale will sentence Power-Williams, who is in custody, next week. He said it would be ”an awfully long time” before he would be again allowed to drive.