A Tasmanian man has been sentenced for lying to police about being the driver of a car that fled from officers, with CCTV later exposing the real culprit driving at the time.
Rex Andrew Whiley, 23, was handed four months’ jail, wholly suspended, after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice in the Supreme Court this month.
The incident unfolded on March 7, 2024, when police spotted Drew Jones driving through Burnie.
Jones, who was “well known to police”, accelerated rapidly when officers activated their lights and successfully evaded capture.
Police later found Jones in a nearby street with Whiley present. When questioned about the driving, Jones denied being behind the wheel.
Whiley backed up the lie, falsely claiming he had been the driver instead of Jones.
But investigators found the vehicle had visited an address in nearby Payne Street where multiple CCTV cameras overlooked the area.
“The CCTV footage clearly showed that Mr Jones was the driver of the motor vehicle and you were a rear seat passenger,” Justice Tamara Jago told Whiley during sentencing.
The footage blew their story apart, leading to charges for both men.
Jones pleaded guilty to driving offences including evading police in the Magistrates Court.
“Whilst it is relevant that your actions did not ultimately result in Mr Jones avoiding responsibility for the driving offences, the fact remains you were prepared to lie for him and help him avoid such responsibility,” Justice Jago said.
“That is a very serious matter. In many ways, it matters not that your efforts to defeat the due course of justice were unsuccessful.”
She added the “sinister aspect” was the intent behind the deception.
“You and others who may be minded to act in a similar fashion going forward must understand that attempts to interfere with the administration of justice will not be tolerated,” she said.
As part of his suspended sentence, Whiley must complete 91 hours of community service.
If he commits another imprisonable offence within 18 months or fails to complete the community work, he faces jail time.
