Shots fired at police car

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34104, 17 March 1976, Page 10

Shots fired at police car

A man fired two shots In the direction of a police patrol car that followed him after an earlier incident in which the man had also fired a .303 rifle at his home, Mr

i E. S. J. Crutchley, S.M., heard I in the Magistrate's Court i yesterday. Robert Wayne Cooke aged 26., j a pastry cook, was later overj whelmed by a civilian after he had tried to break into a house. Cooke pleaded guilty to one charge of unlawful possession of a firearm, two of discharging a firearm near a house, three of presenting a firearm, two of carrying a firearm except for some lawful purpose, and one of wilful damage. j He was • convicted and re- • manded on all nine charges to March 23 for a probation report and sentence. Sergeant R. H. Prouting told the Court that on March 6 the defendant got a rifle from a friend. He had no permit for the rifle, and was a person prohibited by the police from holding one.

Cooke’s de facto wife rang

the police about 3 p.m. that day and said that he had left the house in a very agitated mood and was carrying the rifle. She said she suspected he had gone to see his former wife.

When the defendant arrived home and realised that his de facto wile had told the police about the rifle lie pointed the rifle at her. Her sister tried to intervene, but the defendant discharged the rifle. The bullet narrowly missed the top part of his de facto wife’s body. The woman and her sister then ran out of the house and went to tlie defendant’s father’s home. Cooke followed them there, and a further shot was fired. Tlie defendant then drove away with the rifle in his car. He went straight through a police cordon that had been placed there to try and stop him.

The police followed Cooke, and when he realised this. Cooke got out of his car and fired at the patrol car, which was about 150 yards away. The police retreated waiting until the defendant returned to his car. When Cooke drove of

again, they followed him a second time, but were once more deterred by another shot from the defendant. Cooke then went to a house and tried to gain entry by breaking a pane of glass. The defendant was let into the house by the resident, who later over-powered him. The defendant said, when questioned by the police, that he had been upset by a domestic argument and wanted to go and see his former wife He said the rifle had not been procured for this reason. When he found out his de facto wife had informed them about the rifle, he panicked. Cooke said that when the rifle had discharged at the two women he had got just as much a fright as they did as he had not realised the rifle was In » firing position. He had tried to break into the property to use a teleohone to call his de facto wife. In explanation for the shots fired a’ the police car, he said he fired over their heads and although he was trying to stop them following him he had never had ‘anv intention of hitting anvone