An Illawarra driver found with a loaded gun in his car following a short police chase from Berkeley to Unanderra on Friday evening has been identified in court as convicted criminal Damien Glen Featherstone.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Featherstone, from Woonona, fronted Wollongong Local Court on Monday on eight charges stemming from the October 13 incident.
Police will allege he refused to stop his Holden Commodore when officers attached to the Lake Illawarra target action group directed him to pull over on Nannawilli Street about 10.30pm.
Police initiated a pursuit, chasing Featherstone for a short distance until he lost control of the Holden and crashed into a garden at the intersection of Tannery Street and the Princes Highway.
A male passenger, aged 16, was apprehended immediately, however police will allege Featherstone fled on foot. He was tracked down by a police dog a short time later.
Police allegedly found a loaded 357 revolver following a search of the vehicle.
Featherstone was charged with numerous weapons offences including having a loaded firearm in a public place. He was also charged with a police pursuit, dangerous driving, and driving without a licence.
Featherstone did not apply for bail and it was formally refused in Wollongong Local Court on Monday, however the 29-year-old took the opportunity to claim he had been brutalised by police during his arrest.
“The police bashed me and put the dog on me,” he said, pointing to a bandage around his right arm.
Magistrate Mark Douglass ordered Featherstone undergo a physical and psychological assessment whilst in custody.
The teen will face court in November.
