By Angus Delaney, Alexander Darling and Hanna Mills Turbet
Experts and workers at Melbourne’s Northland have raised serious concerns over security failures at the shopping centre after a 4WD smashed through bollards and sped through the building on Wednesday.
The centre was locked down for the third time in four weeks – and the second time in two days – on Thursday morning due to a fire caused by a light in the cosmetics department of its Myer department store.
Smoke was seen billowing out of Myer on Thursday morning.
Police have charged the alleged driver of the allegedly stolen Toyota LandCruiser, a 27-year-old East Melbourne man, with seven offences, including theft of a motor vehicle and reckless conduct endangering life. The man appeared briefly at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Thursday afternoon.
He was remanded in custody for a further hearing next week and made no application for bail.
The 4WD speeding through Northland shopping centre on Wednesday afternoon.Credit: The Age
The dramatic rampage through the centre is the second major security incident at Northland in just three weeks. Less than a month ago, youth gangs brawled with machetes in the food court and outside, terrifying customers, sending the centre into lockdown and prompting the state government to bring forward a ban on the sale of machetes.
When The Age visited on Thursday, staff said the Preston shopping centre’s security alarm had not sounded until up to an hour after the gang brawl began, leaving businesses to identify the unfolding danger themselves.
One employee, who wished to remain anonymous, said they had made the call to lock down their store only after they saw customers running past their business towards the exit.
“We saw people run away, so we are looking around [thinking] ‘what happened?’ … and more people ran away. We quickly closed the [storefront] door,” they said. “We don’t know what happened.”
CCTV footage of the Northland machete brawl between warring youth gangs last month.
It wasn’t until “maybe one hour” later that Northland sounded the alarm, they said. “They should tell people. People are hiding in the shop.”
Another employee who was working during the brawl estimated the alarm sounded about 40 minutes after fighting began, which left at least one man with serious injuries.
AG Security Group managing director Michael O’Connell said although no one was hurt when the LandCruiser drove through the centre, it “could have been horrific”.
His organisation has been responsible for installing security bollards at many major shopping centres throughout Australia, although not at Northland. He believed the centre should have been prepared for an incident like this, as ram raids are common by thieves targeting shops.
“It appears that they have a bollard that is totally inappropriate for the mass that it has to absorb,” he said. “So when you select an appropriate security bollard, it needs to be ram-raid tested and certified for its application, not just a visual deterrent.”
A Northland employee who did not want to share his name was narrowly missed by the 4WD on Wednesday afternoon as it sped past his workplace. He was shaken by the incident but returned to work on Thursday.
Northland’s owner, Vicinity Centres, has been contacted for comment.
Police allege the driver rammed the car through the shopping centre in a bid to evade authorities.
The LandCruiser was found abandoned in Northcote an hour later, and the East Melbourne man was arrested on Hoddle Street on Thursday morning.
Police said they were first alerted by shopping centre security and allege an electronic key reprogramming tool was used to steal the LandCruiser without the vehicle’s keys.
“It is understood the driver had been shopping inside the centre before returning to the vehicle,” police said.
“Police swiftly responded within five minutes and attempted to block in the LandCruiser, in the carpark about 4.07pm. The LandCruiser took evasive action to avoid police and drove through the middle of the shopping centre.”
Security settings under review
Police Minister Anthony Carbines said on Thursday morning he had spoken with the chief commissioner about the possibility of boosting security at shopping centres.
“Victoria Police will be in further discussions, not just with Northland but other big retailers,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to have another look at some of their security settings, what support we can provide and also their obligations.
“They work very hard and they have a lot of measures in place. In the end, some bad behaviour is hard to predict and manage.”
Premier Jacinta Allan described the incident as shocking and said her thoughts were with anyone who witnessed the “stupid, senseless act”.
“It’s been a tough time to work in and visit Northland shopping centre,” she said.
Asked if more bollards were required around shopping centres, she said she would get more advice from police about the incident.
Acting Deputy Commissioner David Clayton declined to comment on Northland specifically but said “environmental design” could reduce crime in public spaces.
“In general terms, we can see that in order to make areas safer, to do an assessment around what the layers of protection should be or could be, they’ve got to be proportionate,” he said.
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