Police searching for three offenders wanted over spate of robberies

A baker on his way to work thought it was the police behind him when he saw a light flashing in his rear-view mirror, but the sight of two masked men brandishing hammers was a dark sign of what was about to happen.

A young father was left traumatised after he was the victim of a violent attempted armed robbery while he was on his way to work.

Tom* said he was pulling up to the front gate of the Homestyle Bake in Harristown when a white Land Rover Sports 4WD pulled in behind him at 1am on Monday.

He saw a flashing yellow light in the rear-view mirror and his first thought was that it was some kind of emergency services vehicle.

But the sinister ruse was soon revealed.

“I got out of my vehicle to put in the pin code for the electronic gate when two people came running at me with jackets over their heads,” he said.

“I yelled at them to **** off and they ran to their vehicle and came back with a hammer.”

Tom locked himself inside his vehicle while the trio of armed offenders bashed its windows and door panels with their fists and a hammer.

“I was waiting for the gate to open and as soon as it opened I took off and pulled into work,” he said.

The offenders fled in the Land Rover Sports and are linked to incidents at two other addresses that morning.

Toowoomba Detective Senior Sergeant Paul McCusker said they are alleged to have attempted to enter a Glenvale home at 4.30am before they were scared off by a barking dog, and a second Glenvale address where they assaulted a woman.

“One of the offenders was in the process of stealing an item when a struggle with the 33-year-old woman ensued, resulting in the occupant receiving soft tissues damage to her hand and a swollen lip,” he said.

“It is believed that in the struggle the occupant was struck in the face by the offender.”

A handbag, its contents, a vacuum cleaner and garage fob were stolen from the address.

Toowoomba Tactical Crime Squad officers found the vehicle parked at a Grenier Street unit complex with three people inside it about 7.30am on Monday.

“On sighting the police vehicle the driver of the stolen Landrover drove directly at the police vehicle, colliding with the vehicle but wedging it in a position whereby it could not leave the street,” Sgt McCusker said.

“The three occupants ran from the vehicle and are still unaccounted for.”

Investigations are under way with police actively seeking a known male in relation to these offences.

Sgt McCusker said the spate of offending started when the suspects found the Land Rover unsecured with its keys inside.

“Again this is another reminder to the public that you risk being a victim by leaving vehicles unsecured and keys in the vehicle and the financial discomfort you may suffer as a result of theft and damage to your vehicle.”

The incident left Tom shaken as it comes just six months after his Oakey home was ransacked by teens.

He said the attackers knew what they were doing.

“It happened in a hurry, they were not talking to each other, it was lightning fast and very violent,” Tom said.

“I don’t know what would have happened if they broke the window as I was a sitting duck.”

He is frustrated and scared, knowing his assailants were seasoned offenders, who had been released from custody.

“I am not in a good way, I have paranoia, I am jumping at shadows, I don’t know when I will be able to go back to work,” he said.

“The police arrest these people then the courts let them out so there are no consequences.

“It allows them to perfect their craft before they turn 18.

“They are putting videos on Tik Tok and are proud of what they are doing.

“They are evolving and learning and someone is going to die.”

*Last name withheld to protect the victims’ privacy.

Originally published as Police searching for three offenders wanted over spate of robberies