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All Blacks star avoids court charge despite 'extremely excessive' speeding
By Sam Smith
All Blacks loose forward and Blues captain Dalton Papalii has avoided a court charge after he was accused by police of “extremely excessive” speeding on an Auckland motorway.
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A report from the New Zealand Herald revealed on Friday that Papalii was due to be charged by police for in excess of a 100km/h speed limit last Wednesday, but were unable to proceed with the charge due to a “technicality”.
That “technicality” is reported to be related to an issue with the police’s speed detection equipment, which would have resulted in the reading being deemed as invalid in court.
According to the Herald, Papalii would have been charged with a category 1 traffic offence, meaning police would have alleged that the 24-year-old more than 50km/h above the speed limit.
Such an offence carries a maximum penalty of a $1000 fine if convicted, but Papalii – who was due to appear in Manukau District Court before undergoing an emergency appendicitis operation late last week – will no longer face the charge after it withdrawn by police.
“Police can confirm a vehicle was stopped on the Southern Motorway in the early hours of 1 June after it was allegedly travelling at an extremely excessive speed,” a police spokesperson told the Herald of the inactive case.
“The driver was spoken to on the roadside and was remorseful for the situation… Regrettably, police has had to withdraw the matter from the court due to a technicality.”
Papalii now faces misconduct proceedings from New Zealand Rugby’s integrity unit, and is reported to have been left embarrassed after addressing the incident and expressing regret to his Blues teammates and senior leadership.
The 12-test flanker’s indiscretion comes as the Blues prepare to host a Super Rugby Pacific semi-final against the Brumbies at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday.
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Papalii has been at the forefront of the franchise’s success this season, captaining the team for a large part of their record-breaking 14-match unbeaten run.
He was, however, absent from last week’s quarter-final win over the Highlanders due to his appendix surgery, and will miss this weekend’s clash against the Brumbies as the Blues continue to push for a fifth Super Rugby title.
