‘Vigilante’ charged over fatal crash after allegedly chasing suspected thief wrong way down Bruce Highway
One of two drivers charged in a head-on collision that killed an innocent 26-year-old man was chasing a suspected scrap metal thief the wrong way along the Bruce Highway.
In the weeks before the crash at Burpengary, north of Brisbane, thieves had targeted scrap metal businesses in the Narangba area. A stolen white Isuzu was linked to these thefts.
The Isuzu truck was seen driving around the area on the night of February 17, and the information spread to many business owners approaching the industrial area.
The business owners, including a 42-year-old man working in one of the businesses and driving a Ford Ranger, went after Isuzu.
All but one of the vehicles (the Ford Ranger) abandoned the chase before the Isuzu driver began driving the wrong way along the Bruce Highway at about 10.30pm.
Both the Isuzu and Ford Ranger were traveling southbound in the northbound lanes of the highway.
At the same time, 26-year-old Andre Roberts was leaving work and driving north towards Caboolture.
The Isuzu crashed head-on into Roberts’ Honda Accord and caught fire, killing the young driver instantly.
The 46-year-old driver of the Isuzu was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The next day, the Ford Ranger was found at a scrap metal dealer on Magnesium Street in Narangba. The 42-year-old man driving the Ford was initially interviewed by police and released without charge.
In the days after the crash, Detective Inspector David Harbison stopped short of saying the motorway chase was prudent, but described the drivers pursuing the stolen Isuzu as “concerned business owners interested in their property”.
“Prior to the incident, this truck and its driver were allegedly involved in some minor criminal activity, which included the theft of some scrap,” he told reporters at the time.
“It is my understanding that a number of these businesses have been involved or have been the subject of various property crimes over the last few weeks.
“Some of these people were living in these buildings, some were openly talking to each other. Very quickly whispers spread that the truck was staking out the building or was involved in property crime, and phone calls were made to interested parties to come and deal with their own property.”
During the chase, the Isuzu allegedly crashed into a barrier near the weighbridge area in Burpengary, scattering what Harbison described as “just junk in general”, including suspected stolen copper and other scrap metal.
The Isuzu then allegedly reversed at an intersection.
“We think things are taking a turn in the wrong direction at this point,” Harbison said.
The driver of a Ford Ranger in Narangba has been charged with one count of manslaughter and dangerous operation of a vehicle causing grievous bodily harm and will appear in court on April 13, police announced on Wednesday.
The driver of the Isuzu, a 46-year-old man from Redcliffe, was charged with manslaughter as well as 10 other charges, including four counts of entering a premises and committing an offence, three counts of theft, two counts of receiving defective goods and one count of unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
He was taken into custody and is expected to appear in the Caboolture Magistrates’ Court on May 12.
Two more people have been charged in connection with the theft of an Isuzu from a business in Hemmant about a week before the Feb. 9 crash.
A 49-year-old man and a 36-year-old man, both from Redcliffe, were charged last month with entering premises, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and weapons offences. They were not charged with any crimes in connection with Roberts’ death.
Roberts’ partner Pheobe Burns paid tribute to her soulmate on social media, writing: “Words can’t truly describe how much you mean to me and how much my heart hurts. You didn’t deserve to leave yet.”
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