A samurai sword-wielding man who had taken his former partner and their child and led police on a high speed chase told the woman they would all die "a luxurious death".

Gary Ratima Karangaroa, 29, took the woman and their five-year-old daughter from a Hastings address at 1.30pm on August 6, last year, after threatening the woman with a samurai sword.

He drove from the address in a white Mercedes sedan, speeding away as the girl sat on her mother's lap in the passenger's seat. Their door was still open.

The woman told Karangaroa to pull over or she would call police. He attempted to punch her, but hit the girl in the face instead.

Karangaroa drove around Hastings, dodging other vehicles and driving on the footpath to get through traffic lights. The woman continued to plead with him to stop but he refused.

When she got out her phone he grabbed it and threw it out the car window and punched her in the face.

Karangaroa then drove south along State Highway Two towards Waipawa at high speed. The woman and her child were terrified and continued asking him to pull over.

He told the woman that if he saw any police he would not stop and they would all die "a luxurious death".

At 2.25pm he pulled into the BP service station at Waipawa and put $75 of fuel in the car. The woman tried to open her door but this made him agitated. While looking for his EFTPOS card a small tin fell from his pocket, spilling methamphetamine in the footwell. This angered him further and he jumped in the driver's seat and sped away without paying.

He continued driving south towards Waipukurau, with the woman still begging him to let her and the child go.

He finally pulled over on Porangahau Road and let them out.

Police found Karangaroa about an hour later, driving north on SH2, north of Waipawa. Police cars followed him to the Peka Peka wetlands where more police cars were waiting.

The police cars had their red and blue lights flashing and sirens activated.

Karangaroa did not stop. He accelerated and overtook into oncoming traffic, causing vehicles to swerve off the road to avoid a collision. He reached speeds of 130kmh in the 100kmh area. Police abandoned the pursuit due to his reckless driving.

Police located him a number of times in Hastings but he would speed off towards oncoming traffic and turn his headlights off.

He eventually crashed the car and ran away on foot.

Police found two samurai swords in the car, as well as a methamphetamine pipe and two small empty plastic "point bags".

Police searched for Karangaroa over the following days but he was not located until August 11 after he stole $137 worth of clothing from The Warehouse in Napier.

He was arrested in the store car park, and was found with a bumbag containing methamphetamine.

Karangaroa, who has been in custody since the offending, appeared in Napier District Court on Monday. He pleaded guilty to charges of male assaults female, assaulting a child, possession of an offensive weapon and reckless driving.

He will be sentenced next month.