A man has been charged following a confrontation with NSW Police and Fire & Rescue NSW officers at Rock Flat, near Cooma yesterday, NSW Police say.
About 3.15pm yesterday, emergency services were called to the intersection of the Monaro Highway and Tom Groggin Road at Rock Flat following reports of a large grass fire.
Police will allege a 42-year-old man from a nearby property approached crews from Fire & Rescue NSW and the Rural Fire Service who were attempting to fight the blaze.
He became aggressive towards Fire & Rescue NSW officers and prevented them from attending to the burning grass.
During the confrontation, the man allegedly slammed the door of a fire truck onto the leg of a fire officer.
Fire officers withdrew from the scene due to the man’s behaviour and contacted police when they allegedly noticed a firearm inside the man’s vehicle.
When officers from Monaro Local Area Command attended to speak with the man about the alleged incident, he allegedly rammed a police car before driving off.
Officers followed the man and were able to stop the vehicle in a nearby paddock. The man allegedly got out of his vehicle and approached police in an aggressive manner.
He refused several directions to stop and an officer discharged a Taser at the man which caused him to fall to the ground. He continued to resist attempts to restrain him and was Tasered again before police were able to handcuff the man.
The man was treated at the scene by NSW Ambulance Paramedics before being taken to Cooma Police Station.
A 42-year-old man was charged with several offences including:
- Intimidation;
- Hinder Fire Fighter;
- Resist/Hinder Police;
- Assault (Fire Fighter); and
- Malicious damage (to the police vehicle)
He was granted strict conditional bail to appear before Cooma Local Court on Thursday 9 June 2016.
