Major police operation after reports woman abducted in Merrimac on Gold Coast

It’s been revealed that a woman allegedly abducted on the Gold Coast was taken to hospital for treatment with multiple injuries as police continue to search for two men believed to have been responsible.

A woman who was allegedly assaulted and forced into a vehicle in Merrimac on the Gold Coast was taken to hospital for treatment of multiple injuries.

Police are still hunting for two men after witnesses reported hearing the woman screaming as she was dragged into a white ute near All Saints Anglican School on Highfield Dr shortly before 5pm on Sunday. The ute was reported as having no number plates.

Multiple police units and the Polair helicopter were involved in an urgent search for the vehicle.

The ute was tracked to a Bunning store on Reedy Creek Rd in Burleigh, where it was found abandoned in the car park.

The woman sought refuge at a McDonald’s restaurant a short distance away, while the two men had fled the scene in another vehicle.

Police gathering evidence where the suspect ute was abandoned in the car park of a Bunnings store in Burleigh Waters. Picture: Nine Gold Coast News.

Acting Superintendent Scott Knowles said the men involved, one of whom was the woman’s partner, were known to police and efforts were ongoing on Monday to locate them.

“Using the camera network through our transport partners, plus the Gold Coast City Council, we managed to spot (the ute) driving around the Gold Coast in a variety of locations,” he said.

“Eventually our police chopper tracked that vehicle to the Bunnings, into the car park there.

“By the time police arrived the vehicle was empty however we reviewed the CCTV footage from Bunnings and the two males who were involved in the incident were seen getting into a silver four wheel drive.

“ ... At this point in time we haven’t located the two men responsible. We’re continuing to track them down, but we know who they are.”

Police have seized the ute involved in the alleged abduction and are conducting scientific tests to collect evidence.

The woman who was forced into the vehicle suffered multiple injuries and was taken by police to hospital for treatment.

“She was conveyed to Gold Coast University Hospital for initial treatment,” Acting Supt Knowles said. “Our police took her up there for that purpose, because it was quite obvious she had been assaulted reasonably seriously.

“(She had) a lot of abrasions, bruising, contusions.”

Police investigations into the incident are continuing.

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