Extra jail time for police chases

A 34-year-old Albany man with an extensive criminal history and taste for luxury vehicles has had nine months added to his prison sentence after two high-speed police chases.

Appearing in Albany Magistrate’s Court via video link from Albany Regional Prison, Kristien Stokke was sentenced for 10 charges while serving a 21-month jail term.

Stokke pleaded guilty to all offences including two counts of reckless driving to escape pursuit from earlier this year.

The first of them was on the evening of March 8, when Stokke failed to stop for police after being intercepted on the Great Southern Highway in Denmark travelling at 90km/h in a 60km/h zone.

He was riding a Honda CBR motorcycle without a licence.

Following a short chase through Denmark, Stokke fell off his motorcycle near the Denmark Chocolate Factory and escaped police on foot.

On April 26, Stokke led officers on a 35km chase which reached speeds of up to 160km/h along the South Coast Highway.

Stokke sped past police at 139km/h in a 90km/h zone in a 2004 BMW 3 Series on Peaceful Bay Road in Bow Bridge.

Failing to stop, Stokke entered the Peaceful Bay town site and did a U-turn between two vehicles after having his front tyres blown out by police “stingers”.

The chase continued on to South Coast Highway and Tindale Road before Stokke and a passenger abandoned their vehicle on Northumberland Road.

The passenger was arrested but Stokke escaped.

Other motorists were forced to swerve to avoid him during the chase.

Police finally arrested him on May 1 at the Ayr Sailean caravan park in Bow Bridge, after receiving reports of suspicious activity.

Stokke was found in possession of a 2017 Mercedes sedan and he admitted to buying the vehicle knowing it was stolen.

In December 2013, Stokke stole a police car in a failed attempt to escape officers on an outstanding arrest warrant near Lancelin, sparking a land and air search. Stokke had been trying to evade police in a different car which he abandoned when it became bogged near bushland.

After a foot chase, he got into an unattended police car.

And at the age of 19 in 2004, Stokke was convicted over releasing pepper spray at Burswood Casino, leading to the evacuation of more than 2000 patrons.

At the time, magistrate Peter Malone accepted that Stokke was pulling a prank in the casino incident, but said it was no laughing matter in the age of terrorism.

He jailed Stokke for three months for the pepper spray incident in a total sentence of two years after he pleaded guilty to a string of unrelated attacks against people in his home town of Lancelin.