Emma Wailes sentenced for 194kph drag race
By the time police caught up to the Subaru WRX dragging on the motorway, it was hitting speeds close to 200km/h.
Inner West
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A young woman has been sentenced for racing another driver on the M4, reaching speeds of almost 200km/h.
Emma Mae Wailes, a 25-year-old from Werrington Downs near Penrith, was convicted in Burwood Local Court for drag racing on a public road.
She was racing another driver at speeds between 140km/h to 160km/h at 1.50am on December 17, when police spotted the two white Subarus driving on the M4 motorway at Lidcombe, court documents said.
“Both vehicles could be heard accelerating harder at the same time,” NSW Police said in a statement of facts.
“The vehicles were observed to increase speeds side by side.”
The speed limit on the M4 near the Hills Rd exit is 90km/h. Police had to work to catch up to the two cars.
When they were about 200 metres behind them, they maintained a steady speed to measure how fast they were driving. The calibrated digital speedometer returned a reading of 194 km/h.
Police switched on the sirens and instructed the cars to pull over. One of the WRXs, driven by Joseph Bechara, 24, turned off the motorway at the James Ruse Drive exit, where his vehicle was eventually stopped.
The WRX being driven by Wailes evaded police, overtaking “a number of other vehicles” in the process.
But the officers had captured her number plate and they paid her home a visit the next night.
Her licence was immediately suspended and she was charged with three offences, including organise, promote etc race between vehicles; drive recklessly/furiously or speed/manner dangerous, and; exceed speed by 45km/h.
Wailed pleaded guilty to the first two offences, but the third was withdrawn.
Magistrate Susan Horan sentenced her to a community corrections order for six months, disqualified her from driving for 12 months and fined her $1000.
Bechara pleaded guilty to driving recklessly and driving more than 45km/h over the speed limit. He entered a plea of ‘not guilty’ to organising an illegal street race.
He is expected to present to Burwood Local Court later this year for a hearing.