- A stolen Land Cruiser rammed a police SUV and drove through a Melbourne mall.
- It accelerated while driving inches from the shops, narrowly missing bystanders.
- The SUV was abandoned at a nearby location, and the driver was arrested the next day.
Shopping malls are typically filled with shoppers, food courts, and endless kiosks. But yesterday, at Melbourne’s Northland shopping center, one SUV decided to throw all that predictability out the window and go for a ride. Fast.
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It all started around 4:00 pm on Wednesday when police were alerted about a stolen Land Cruiser 200 Series in Preston. The officers quickly spotted the vehicle parked at the local mall, but the driver wasn’t exactly in the mood to cooperate. In fact, he allegedly rammed an unmarked police car multiple times before bolting.
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Rather than hitting the usual suburban streets, the driver took a hard left into full chaos mode, straight into the shopping center itself. Smartphone footage quickly captured the madness, showing the SUV narrowly missing storefronts and a dining area before bursting out a second set of glass doors to escape.
Luckily, the area of the mall was empty at the time, so no one was hit by the speeding off-roader. According to witnesses, the scene quickly became a full-on emergency response, with police officers, security, firefighters, and paramedics flooding the mall. Two people were treated on the spot, including a woman who was reportedly left in shock.
Speaking to ABC News, Victoria Police superintendent Kelly Lawson said that the incident “wasn’t a targeted attack on anyone”, but “purely a means to get away from the police”, as the driver exited the mall at “the first available opportunity”.
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As reported by CarExpert, , the vehicle was found abandoned in Northcote at 5:10 pm. The suspect managed to stay off the radar for a few hours before being nabbed by police at 8:30 am the following Thursday. Officers were able to identify the 27-year-old using footage from the shopping mall’s security cameras.
Police confirmed that the Land Cruiser was stolen from an Ivanhoe East residence on June 2. During the arrest, authorities also seized the electronic key reprogramming tool used in the theft.
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At least we can all rest easy knowing that someone’s finally going to pay for the mess they caused. Let’s hope this guy doesn’t get off too easily.
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