Car stolen in Albury, driven into police officer on Central Coast

Craig Vincent Whalen-Johnson's matters were heard in Newcastle Local Court on Tuesday following his arrest on Monday.

Whalen-Johnson will return to the court on Wednesday next week.

EARLIER: A car has been stolen in Albury and driven into a police officer on the Central Coast.

The Volkswagen Jetta was stolen on the Border in recent days and driven to West Gosford, where it was spotted on Monday morning.

Officers patrolling the area saw the car at a Manns Road service station and the occupants stole fuel.

Police pursued the car through multiple suburbs but called off the chase for safety reasons.

A Highway Patrol member was deploying road spikes on Narara Valley Drive at Narara about 9.20am when he was struck by the car.

A witness wrote on Facebook that the officer had gone "flying through the air".

The 42-year-old senior constable suffered serious leg and facial injuries, fractured ribs and a punctured lung.

He was flown to the Royal North Shore Hospital for treatment.

The driver continued for several hundred metres after hitting the officer before abandoning the car.

The driver and passengers fled into bushland.

IN OTHER NEWS:

The male passengers, aged 15, 19 and 24, were arrested on Monday afternoon.

A 24-year-old man who was the alleged driver was also arrested and was charged with aggravated driving occasioning grievous bodily harm while escaping pursuit and other driving offences.

The Toronto man, who has links to Albury, will face court in Newcastle on Tuesday.

The passengers were released pending further inquiries.

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