Mitchell St mayhem an alleged act of payback after assault cops say, with three men now in custody

A MAN ploughed into pedestrians and slammed into a popular Darwin CBD watering hole in an act of alleged retaliation after being assaulted on Mitchell St, police say

A MAN who ploughed into pedestrians and slammed into a popular Darwin CBD watering hole in an act of alleged retaliation is expected to be charged as early as Monday, as detectives piece together the motives that sparked the early Sunday morning mayhem on Mitchell Street.

Shocking witness footage shows a Toyota LandCruiser driving down Mitchell Street around 3am before swerving right towards a group of pedestrians, striking a 25-year-old man and coming within a hair’s breadth of others, before slamming into Six Tanks Brew Co.

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The 4WD still wedged into the entrance of the Six Tanks Brew Co. pub on Mitchell St on Sunday morning. Picture: Madura McCormack/NT News

NT Police serious crime squad Senior Constable Richard Musgrave said police were investigating allegations the driver of the car, a 38-year-old man, had been assaulted by members of the group prior to the frightening incident.

The driver, the man he allegedly struck and another 36-year-old man, all from Darwin, are in police custody.

Charges were yet to be laid on Sunday due to the “large” nature of the investigation.

Police are also searching for a female black Labrador which was in the LandCruiser during the incident and was seen in witness footage bolting from the scene.

Senior Constable Musgrave said more people could be charged as investigations continued, but so far it’s believed three people were involved in the assault prior to the crash, with police piecing together CCTV and witness footage to determine what happened.

All three men, who are known to each other, have been tested for drugs and alcohol and results are pending.

The partner of the man struck by the 4WD told the NT News at the scene of the crash that she thought her partner was “dead” after he went “under the bonnet”, but Senior Constable Musgrave said the man was not pinned under the car.

Emergency services workers on the scene soon after the 4WD was driven into the front of the Six Tanks pub on Mitchell St. Picture: Supplied

The 25-year-old man suffered leg and back injuries and was on Sunday in a stable condition at Royal Darwin Hospital.

Police said the driver of the car had no visible injuries.

Describing the incident as “confronting”, Senior Constable Musgrave said a car coming towards people at speed, towards a licensed premises, would have been a “huge shock” for those at the scene.

Mitchell Street was particularly boisterous on Sunday morning, as patrons at end of year events, including the Raindance music festival, spilt onto Darwin’s premier party strip.

The scene at Six Tanks on Mitchell St on Sunday as workers clean up after a 4WD was driven into the pub’s entrance. Picture: Glenn Campbell

Multiple videos of the incident were posted to social media in the hours after the incident, which revealed the chaotic scenes moments after impact.

Onlookers can be seen in witness footage running to assist those involved in the crash.

One video shows a man in a white T-shirt, who was walking with the group the car struck, exclaiming “that f***er there almost killed me man”.

Police shut Mitchell Street between the intersection at Peel Street and the start of Crocosaurus Cove for a number of hours on Sunday as investigators combed the scene.