Speedster almost mowed down policeman in Launceston chase

A woman in her 20s has been jailed over a police chase and dangerous rampage through Launceston CBD where she almost mowed down an officer before crashing into another car.

POLICE didn’t have time to fully deploy road spikes before agoraphobic speedster Bianca Elizabeth Pyke swerved to avoid them, and in doing so, almost mowed down a Launceston sergeant.

Acting Sergeant Michael Grenda managed to jump out of the way, but Pyke didn’t end her rampage through Launceston’s CBD as she wove in and out of traffic at speeds well above the limit.

The September 2019 police chase came to an end when the disqualified driver ran a red light and crashed into another car, spinning out and coming to a stop.

Pyke was arrested a few hours later when police found her hiding beneath blankets in a Ravenswood home, the Supreme Court of Tasmania heard.

While sentencing earlier this month, Justice Robert Pearce said Pyke had a criminal record that ran over 44 pages.

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He said the 28-year-old began driving at speeds between 80 to 100km/h in a 50km/h zone after police started following her along Invermay Rd.

They were about to lay road spikes on the Tamar St bridge but ran out of time, attempting to throw them across her path as she braked heavily.

“As he did so, you braked heavily, then swerved to the incorrect side of the road and accelerated heavily. By doing so you drove towards Sgt Grenda, who was on the opposite side of the road and was forced to jump out of the way to avoid being struck,” Justice Pearce said.

“It is not contended that you drove at him deliberately, but rather to avoid passing over the area where you thought the road spikes were going to be thrown.”

He said she suffered from agoraphobia, which led to her driving when she should not have.

“Although the period of driving was not prolonged, you drove at excessive speed and in an erratic way from one side of the Launceston CBD to the other,” he said.

“It is only good fortune that no-one was killed or badly injured.”

Pyke, who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, evading police, driving while disqualified and possessing a controlled drug, was jailed for two years with a non-parole period of 12 months.