A misplaced mobile phone helped a Palmerston man recover his stolen car on the weekend.
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Police arrested a 31-year-old man for traffic offences following a pursuit in the Palmerston and rural area over the weekend.
At around midnight on Saturday, a 46-year-old man left his running vehicle parked at a service station wash bay in Palmerston.
Police allege a 31-year-old took jumped into the vehicle and drove off.
But the alleged crook wasn't to know the victim had left his phone in the car.
He was able to track the phone and advise police of the vehicle's location.
More reading: Katherine's crime stats take a dramatic plunge.
Police located the vehicle a short time later in Driver, a Palmerston suburb, and the alleged car thief sped off.
The stolen car travelled throughout Palmerston before heading outbound on the Stuart Highway towards Coolalinga where it allegedly ran several red lights and reached high speeds.
Police stopped the chase because of the danger and multiple officers commenced a search for the vehicle.
The vehicle was located in Livingstone and police arrested the 31-year-old man.
He was subjected to an alcohol breath analysis which returned a positive result of .146%.
He was also found to be disqualified from driving in the NT.
The man was charged with:
- unlawful use of motor vehicle
- engage in dangerous driving during pursuit
- drink/drive medium range
- drive motor vehicle while disqualified.
He was scheduled to appear in Darwin Local Court today.
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