A POLICE officer was caught speeding at 123mph on a Tayside road while hunting a man wanted for several alleged “serious crimes”.
The Road Policing Unit (RPU) was dispatched on May 11 to help with a “dynamic operation” in hunting the 23-year-old.
The officer was snapped going 53mph over the limit by a speed camera on the A90 Aberdeen to Dundee road but was granted an emergency service exemption as the vehicle was responding to a sighting of the wanted individual.
Police Scotland said the 23-year-old suspect was charged following the hunt.
The details were released to the Tele under Freedom of Information legislation.
A police spokesman said: “Officers from the RPU were tasked to support a dynamic operation on May 11, which resulted in a 23-year-old man being charged after he was wanted for a series of crimes committed across the Tayside area. In order to support this operation the nearest available suitable road policing unit was tasked to provide specialist support in a specific location.
“The officers involved were all trained and authorised advanced police drivers and a statutory exemption in relation to the application of speed limits was met in these circumstances.
“The safety of the public is the primary consideration during all police activity and given the nature of response driving, the need for continuous dynamic risk assessment forms an integral part of all police driver training.”
Sandy Allan, road safety manager for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents Scotland, said it was essential that emergency response officers were highly-trained.
He said: “We all expect the police and other emergency service vehicles to respond as quickly as possible to any emergency. These journeys often involve exceeding the recognised speed limits, going through red lights and driving on the wrong side of the road, which is why it’s essential that drivers and riders are highly trained.
“We mustn’t forget, even if the emergency service driver is appropriately trained, other road users are not and often don’t appreciate the speeds at which responding vehicles are travelling.”
Figures show that 298 police officers have been caught speeding in Tayside since April 2013 — 272 of which were granted emergency service exemption.
Two were reported for the incidents.