Payne Haas’s mum allegedly fleeing police at time of Gold Coast triple-fatal crash
Payne Haas’s mum was allegedly fleeing police and driving on a suspended licence when she was involved in a horror crash that killed three members of the same family.
Police & Courts
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A retired skin cancer specialist, his partner and her adult daughter were the victims of a shocking hinterland car crash which has left the mother of Broncos star Payne Haas in hospital with serious injuries.
Uiatu “Joan” Taufua, 46, remains in Gold Coast University Hospital with significant wounds including multiple fractures, internal injuries and bruised lungs as the sole survivor of the horror crash at Bonogin on Friday night.
No charges have been laid, but police allege Ms Taufua was seen in a black Mercedes wagon “driving erratically” a short time before the crash and allegedly sped off when a patrol car attempted to intercept her after activating lights and sirens.
No pursuit was launched, but the officers were flagged down by a passing motorist just minutes later alerting them to the horrific scene unfolding one kilometre down the road.
Acting Chief Superintendent Christopher Stream said Ms Taufua was still in hospital on Sunday morning.
“Police have been checking with the hospital with regards to that,” he said.
“The female driver (Ms Taufua) of that vehicle sustained significant injuries as well, and as of yet police don’t have a medical clearance to interview that female driver.
“But as soon as we possibly can, that driver will be interviewed.”
Ms Taufua was allegedly driving with a suspended licence at the time of the tragedy. She had only weeks ago been released from jail in October after serving a month in custody for assaulting two security guards at the Star Gold Coast casino.
Detectives have been unable to talk to her as police try to piece together the cause of a crash which has ripped two families apart.
The three people in the other car, who tragically died at the scene, have been identified as Susan Zimmer, 70, her partner Chris Fawcett, 79, and Ms Zimmer’s daughter Stephanie, 35.
Ms Zimmer and Mr Fawcett, a former skin cancer specialist, had lived together at a peaceful acreage property at Bonogin, while her adult daughter lived at nearby Mudgeeraba.
Speaking at the scene of the crash, surviving daughter Claudine Snow said she had driven up from northern NSW today.
“My sister was intellectually disabled but could light up the room and make the coldest of hearts laugh,” she told Nine News.
“She was incredible.”
She described her mum as her best friend and said she would “never be the same again” following her death.
“Chris was a doctor, he saved so many lives,” she said.
Ms Zimmer grew up between northern NSW and the Gold Coast and was a qualified accountant who had worked with Mr Fawcett before they retired.
A family friend said they were “lovely people”.
“Sue was always so friendly and happy,” she said.
Mr Fawcett and Stephanie were already dead by the time emergency crews arrived, but paramedics spent almost half an hour trying to save the older Zimmer to no avail.
The accident is the subject of a Forensic Crash Unit probe with police investigating allegations the wagon being driven by Ms Taufua was driving erratically in the lead-up to the tragedy.
Gold Coast Police District Officer, Superintendent Craig Hanlon, said it was a horrific scene. “This was a tragic, tragic incident,” he said.
“It’s devastating at any time of year (not just the Christmas holiday period).
“But to lose three people from the same family, you can’t recover from that.
“It was a very, very confronting scene for police and all emergency responders who attended as well as members of the public who came and supported police and assisted to try and save these people’s lives.
“The thoughts and prayers of the Queensland Police service are with their friends and family at this time.”
The Good Samaritan who helped free Ms Taufua from the burning wreckage of her car, a 45-year-old local man, was later taken to Robina Hospital and treated for “emotional distress”.
On Saturday, a makeshift shrine had formed on the stretch of Bonogin Road where the crash took place, with bright flowers contrasting against the charred ground where Ms Taufua’s wagon had burst into flames just hours before.
Forensic paint markings were clearly visible on the road as investigators try to establish exactly how the crash happened.
Supt Hanlon dismissed any suggestion wet weather may have contributed to the crash on an essentially straight stretch of road.
“I don’t think weather would have been a problem, had people been driving to the conditions and the speed limit at the time,” he said.
He also called for any witnesses or drivers with dashcam footage from the area to contact police.
The three deaths took the state’s road toll to 296 for the year, the worst annual figure in a decade.
Crime Stoppers 1800 333 000.
Woman charged after alleged storage facility stabbing
A Brisbane woman has been charged with attempted murder after an alleged stabbing at a storage facility in Brisbane’s north on Saturday.
‘We can keep it hush’: Man’s sick messages 12-year-old girl’s ‘mum’
A man has been busted after talking to an undercover cop who had titled herself as “Naughty Mum” in bid to arrange a meet to have sex with her 12-year-old daughter.