Two men have been charged after what police have described as a “three-day joyride” through Lake Macquarie.
Newcastle City Police District officers noticed a white Hyundai Tucson at Waratah at about 5am on Wednesday morning driving in a dangerous manner that was reported stolen from a Cameron Park address on Tuesday.
The vehicle was then seen by police at about 4:30am yesterday morning travellling at speeds up to 180km/hr on the M1 Pacific Motorway at Wahroonga.
Traffic and Highway Patrol Command initiated a pursuit but it was terminated due to safety reasons.
Three hours later, police spotted the same car on Croudace Bay Bay Road at Belmont before it collided with a police vehicle and took off.
A second pursuit was initiated before later being terminated.
Shortly after that, the Hyundai was located at Gari Street in Charlestown where police were told two men were seen abandoning the vehicle and running into nearby bushland.
Police, with the assistance of the dog unit, located and arrested two men at Park Street before taking them to Belmont Police Station.
An 18-year-old man was charged with take & drive conveyance without consent of owner and a 22-year-old man was charged with be carried in conveyance taken without consent of owner.
Both men were also charged with breach of bail and subsequently refused bail to appear before Belmont Local Court today.