Braeden Finn sees own stolen car posted on social media before finding it burnt out at Palumpa

A Darwin man has been left searching for answers after his ute was stolen and paraded online before it was found burnt out hundreds of kilometres away.

Braeden Finn's car was stolen from Darwin and found burnt out in Wadeye days later.

A Darwin man is searching for answers after his stolen ute was paraded online for days before it was found burnt out hundreds of kilometres away.

On Anzac Day weekend, Braeden Finn, 26, was enjoying a night off with his mates when he decided it was time to go home.

When he returned to an empty parking spot, Mr Finn realised his $17k Toyota HiLux had been stolen.

With the help of the tavern staff, Mr Finn used CCTV footage to figure out two males had hot-wired his vehicle.

After filing a police report, Mr Finn went to bed hoping he would learn more about his car’s whereabouts in the morning.

However, Mr Finn claims he was left in the dark for the following days and says he was forced to investigate his own vehicle’s disappearance.

“They (NT Police) said they would call me if the car went through any cameras,” he said.

“But I never got a call (by police) of it heading out anywhere.”

Mr Finn learned his stolen car was being paraded online.

To his shock, Mr Finn learnt his vehicle was well beyond Darwin when he stumbled across images on social media.

Pictures posted online showed multiple people hanging out of his ute’s doors and tray, while giving hand signs to the camera.

Through his own detective work, the Mr Finn learnt his beloved car was somewhere in the Daly River region – more than 400 kilometres from where it was pilfered.

The vehicle was found burnt on a dirt road in Palumpa.

Despite passing names, images and information onto authorities, Mr Finn says he did not hear of any arrests or questioning taking place.

In the end, a friend of Mr Finn, who was working in the Daly River region, tracked down the vehicle which was found burnt out in Palumpa.

Despite the police being closer to the stolen vehicle than himself, it was Mr Finn who informed authorities of what happened to his vehicle.

Mr Finn said he felt “distraught” by the experience.

“I gave the (photos) to the police,” he claimed.

“And they say they don’t have enough evidence to make an arrest.”

In October 2024, the Finocchiaro Government passed ‘post and boast’ legislation, making certain crimes posted on social media a criminal offence.

In April, footage emerged of a stolen car being used to chase police through Palumpa - the same town Mr Finn’s vehicle was found torched.

Palumpa was also in the headlines recently after footage emerged of a stolen car being used to chase police officers.

NT Police told this masthead they were still investigating Mr Finn’s matter, and encouraged anyone with information to contact authorities.

Mr Finn, however, said it shouldn’t take more than the time it has to make headway.

“My mate went to (someone’s) house and said ‘where the f---s the car?’,” he said.

“The bloke just pointed in a direction and my mate went and found it pretty quick.”

It’s not the first time a Territorian has taken it upon himself to find their stolen property.

In May last year, Harrison Vincent was forced to track down his own LandCruiser, which was found dumped roadside.

Mr Vincent tried to assist authorities by providing them footage purporting to show the alleged offenders joy riding in his car.

Originally published as Braeden Finn sees own stolen car posted on social media before finding it burnt out at Palumpa