Three men allegedly travelled in a stolen car at "high speeds" before it crashed on a highway, a court has heard.
Lachlan Alan Smith, 22, Brandon D'Alessandro, 22, and Mathew James Comi, 38, faced the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday, September 23.
They are yet to enter pleas to one charge each of dishonestly riding or driving a motor vehicle without consent.
Emergency services and police were called to the intersection of the Barton Highway and Gundaroo Drive in north Canberra following reports of a multi-car crash about 2.50pm on Tuesday.
ACT Policing alleges a stolen dark blue-green Volkswagen SUV crashed into two other cars - a Toyota Camry and a Lexus SUV - at the major intersection.
The vehicle was found on its roof when emergency services arrived.
Two people in the Lexus SUV were treated at the scene while Smith, D'Alessandro and Comi were taken to hospital with "non-critical injuries".
They were later arrested and charged by officers.
Police said the Volkswagen was not being pursued at the time of the crash. However, because officers had previously attempted to stop the vehicle, the crash is being investigated with oversight from the Australian Federal Police professional standards unit.
Smith, who is alleged to have been the driver, did not apply for bail on Wednesday.
Co-accused D'Alessandro applied for bail through his Legal Aid duty lawyer, Duncan Errey, who proposed conditions that included living with his mother in Kaleen.
His lawyer argued that remanding him in custody would significantly set back his rehabilitation, adding there was no indication in court documents that D'Alessandro knew the vehicle was stolen.
The court heard D'Alessandro was already serving a four-year partially suspended sentence, imposed by the Supreme Court last year, for similar offending.
Opposing bail, the prosecutor pointed to the man's criminal history - which is said to have 166 entries, including 15 bail breaches - and argued there was a high risk he would commit offences in the community.
She further argued D'Alessandro would have known the vehicle was stolen given the "high speeds" at which it was allegedly being driven.
Special magistrate Sean Richter refused bail after raising concerns about his criminal history.
"I'm not persuaded that this man is a candidate for bail," Mr Richter said.
Comi's Legal Aid duty lawyer, Niamh Dwyer, applied for bail on his behalf, which was also opposed by the prosecution.
The court heard Comi was already on bail for previous alleged offences, meaning he was required to show special or exceptional circumstances to be granted bail.
Dwyer submitted that his mental health conditions - including post-traumatic stress disorder and a personality disorder - met that threshold, arguing his condition would deteriorate significantly in custody.
However, Mr Richter refused bail without needing to hear further submissions from the prosecution, ruling that mental health conditions did not satisfy the special or exceptional circumstances test.
All three cases are scheduled to return to court in October.
Police are urging anyone who saw or has dashcam footage of the blue/green Volkswagen Tiguan SUV travelling between Mitchell and the Barton Highway, or the actual collision, to come forward.
Anyone who can assist police should provide their contact details to Crime Stoppers via the Crime Stoppers ACT website, quoting 8506921.
