A police officer has been airlifted to hospital in Adelaide after being hit by a car which then allegedly left the scene on a South Australian rural highway, the state’s force says.
SA Police said a suspect has been taken into custody over the incident, which allegedly happened when officers were trying to stop a vehicle on the Barrier Highway about 3pm.
The local Brevet Sergeant was struck by the vehicle at Ucolta, a locality east of Peterborough, and was taken to the Peterborough Hospital for treatment before being airlifted to the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
“The officer is in a stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries,” police said in a statement.
A police helicopter tracked the vehicle as it continued south.
Police said the suspect was “safely taken into custody without further incident” about 3:45pm, near the Barrier Highway, about 1.6 kilometres north of the town of Hallett.
“The 43-year-old Victorian man was arrested and charged with attempted murder, acts to endanger life, dangerous driving to escape police pursuit, leave the scene of an accident and other traffic offences,” police said in a statement.
He will be refused police bail and will appear in the Port Pirie Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
SA Police said officers continued to investigate the incident and the arrested man’s vehicle was seized and towed for forensic examination.
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