St Kilda crime: Little Grey St CCTV safety camera concerns

Footage has captured the moment a “crazed” driver allegedly tried to mow a man down in St Kilda — but a system flaw means he could get away with it.

A St Kilda man has raised concerns over the quality of the CCTV cameras in the Little Grey St precinct.

CCTV footage has captured the moment a “crazed” driver allegedly tried to mow a man down in St Kilda last week.

But it’s unlikely to help police track down the driver.

Tony James told the Leader he was standing on the footpath in Little Grey St about 7pm on March 4 when a white ute “veered off the road and tried to run me over”.

“It was really bizarre, I was minding my own business, waiting for a friend and for no reason this guy decided to drive straight at me,” he said.

“I moved out of the way but he reversed back to try and hit me again — it went back and forth about three or four times.”

The incident was captured on several CCTV cameras dotted throughout the area, including one just 4m away.

But a “fatal flaw” in the surveillance system has left police scratching their heads.

The cameras, which were installed in 2018 and cost about $44,000 each, couldn’t read the vehicle’s number plate.

Mr James said “it’s staggering” taxpayers had been stung hundreds of thousands of dollars for “cameras that don’t do their job properly”.

“I’m so annoyed — this guy could have killed me and police wouldn’t be able to find him because the cameras aren’t good enough,” he said.

“What a total waste of money.

“All those people worried about their privacy when the cameras were installed clearly have nothing to worry about.”

Mr James said an officer at St Kilda Police Station told him he could see in the incident clearly but, despite no other cars or obstacles blocking the number plate, there was no clear image.

Police confirmed the ute could be seen travelling past four different cameras in the area at that time but none of them got an adequate shot of the number plate.

“These cameras look like something that should be on a spaceship — they look like they’re going to be really hi-tech but they can’t read a rego,” Mr James said.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman confirmed police were investigating the incident but would not respond to questions about the quality of the cameras and instead directed the Leader to Port Phillip Council.

“Police have seen CCTV footage which they will review,” the spokeswoman said.

The driver of the white ute has been described as medium build with short black hair with a high pitched voice and Irish accent.

Port Phillip Council has been contacted for comment.