Police release name of young man who died in fiery Rotorua crash

Police have released the name of a young man who died in a crash after reports of a vehicle being driven dangerously near Rotorua on Tuesday.

He was 21-year-old Te Peeti Melahkai Raki, of Hamilton.

Police said Raki died at the wheel. Two young passengers who were seriously hurt in the crash remained in hospital.

Police received multiple calls at around 4.30pm on January 13 of a silver Lexus sedan being driving dangerously on State Highway 1 south of Cambridge. It was reportedly seen cutting vehicles off and travelling at more than 80km/h over the speed limit.

The sedan was a vehicle of interest to police after a robbery in Tauranga on Monday.

After being spiked twice, the car crashed into a truck and caught fire on SH36. Eighteen fire extinguishers were used to douse the flames.

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Car seen being driven dangerously later involved in fatal crash

The car was seen cutting off multiple vehicles and travelling more than 80km/h above the legal limit before it crashed into an oncoming truck north of Rotorua.

Crime and Justice

Wed, Jan 14

The truck driver sustained minor injuries.

Police investigating the crash were seeking any CCTV footage or dashcam video of a silver Lexus sedan, with the registration DZS7, on State Highway 1 and State Highway 5, between 4pm and 5:30pm on 13 January.