jacobsian
July 23rd, 2004, 06:53 AM
City under siege
By Police Reporter SAM RICHES
23jul04
CITY streets and buildings were locked down by police and security officers yesterday as a couple allegedly armed with a sawn-off rifle left a trail of damage along two major throroughfares.
At the height of the drama, the man ran through sections of the Royal Adelaide Hospital and university grounds – and tried to hijack a number of vehicles – in a desperate attempt to avoid capture.
Shocked drivers also told how the couple's stolen white VN Holden Commodore careened down North Tce and Frome Rd, hitting other cars before crashing at the hospital.
The incident began on North Tce about 11am, when a police patrol asked for a random check on a set of vehicle number plates.
"Police saw a vehicle and did a check and found it was stolen . . ." said Superintendent Neil Smith, officer in charge of Adelaide Local Service Area.
After noticing police, the car driver veered to the wrong side of North Tce, heading east to the intersection with Frome Rd.
Paula Faraonio, who was travelling with her six-year-old son in a Toyota Landcruiser, saw the car coming towards her at the intersection.
There was no time to act before the car hit her vehicle and a taxi.
"He just came straight for me," Ms Faraonio said. "He spun around, then just kept going. There was just nothing I could do. I just said to my son `put your hands over your eyes'."
The car turned left into Frome Rd, then veered right into a hospital access road, colliding with Susan Marshall's Toyota Corolla.
"I thought I was going to die, I really did. I thought I was going to die – he just came straight at me," she said. Both women and the child were shocked but not hurt.
The car turned into another section of the hospital, crashing near the North Wing entrance.
A woman passenger, allegedly armed with a knife, refused to leave the car and was arrested by police.
However, the man, allegedly armed with a sawn-off .22 calibre rifle, ran through hospital corridors demanding treatment for a gash to his arm.
Confronted by hospital security guards, he fled, running west into nearby university grounds – discarding bloody clothing as he ran.
He crossed Frome Rd – where he allegedly attempted to hijack five vehicles at gunpoint – and ran into the Adelaide University grounds, where he entered several buildings.
Police tightened cordons to the back of a University of South Australia building on the corner of North Tce and Frome Rd, where a man shouted obscenities at security guards before being arrested by STAR Group officers. Police recovered a gun from a ledge on the first floor of a university building.
Traffic along North Tce and Frome Rd was restricted for two hours.
Supt Smith praised hospital and university staff, saying: "This was a very dangerous situation which required very quick action."
A man, 30, of Blair Athol, and a woman, 27, of Parafield Gardens, were in custody at the City Watch House last night.
They will face Adelaide Magistrates Court today on charges including larceny, illegal use, aggravated robbery and weapons charges.
****
I'll fill in a bit of details here - they recovered the gun from the UniSA School Of Natural And Built Environments building..... MY building.... arrghghhhh!!!!! Oh fuck I love this city :D
We've been emailed by about 15 different university staff telling us not to panic... heh.
By Police Reporter SAM RICHES
23jul04
CITY streets and buildings were locked down by police and security officers yesterday as a couple allegedly armed with a sawn-off rifle left a trail of damage along two major throroughfares.
At the height of the drama, the man ran through sections of the Royal Adelaide Hospital and university grounds – and tried to hijack a number of vehicles – in a desperate attempt to avoid capture.
Shocked drivers also told how the couple's stolen white VN Holden Commodore careened down North Tce and Frome Rd, hitting other cars before crashing at the hospital.
The incident began on North Tce about 11am, when a police patrol asked for a random check on a set of vehicle number plates.
"Police saw a vehicle and did a check and found it was stolen . . ." said Superintendent Neil Smith, officer in charge of Adelaide Local Service Area.
After noticing police, the car driver veered to the wrong side of North Tce, heading east to the intersection with Frome Rd.
Paula Faraonio, who was travelling with her six-year-old son in a Toyota Landcruiser, saw the car coming towards her at the intersection.
There was no time to act before the car hit her vehicle and a taxi.
"He just came straight for me," Ms Faraonio said. "He spun around, then just kept going. There was just nothing I could do. I just said to my son `put your hands over your eyes'."
The car turned left into Frome Rd, then veered right into a hospital access road, colliding with Susan Marshall's Toyota Corolla.
"I thought I was going to die, I really did. I thought I was going to die – he just came straight at me," she said. Both women and the child were shocked but not hurt.
The car turned into another section of the hospital, crashing near the North Wing entrance.
A woman passenger, allegedly armed with a knife, refused to leave the car and was arrested by police.
However, the man, allegedly armed with a sawn-off .22 calibre rifle, ran through hospital corridors demanding treatment for a gash to his arm.
Confronted by hospital security guards, he fled, running west into nearby university grounds – discarding bloody clothing as he ran.
He crossed Frome Rd – where he allegedly attempted to hijack five vehicles at gunpoint – and ran into the Adelaide University grounds, where he entered several buildings.
Police tightened cordons to the back of a University of South Australia building on the corner of North Tce and Frome Rd, where a man shouted obscenities at security guards before being arrested by STAR Group officers. Police recovered a gun from a ledge on the first floor of a university building.
Traffic along North Tce and Frome Rd was restricted for two hours.
Supt Smith praised hospital and university staff, saying: "This was a very dangerous situation which required very quick action."
A man, 30, of Blair Athol, and a woman, 27, of Parafield Gardens, were in custody at the City Watch House last night.
They will face Adelaide Magistrates Court today on charges including larceny, illegal use, aggravated robbery and weapons charges.
****
I'll fill in a bit of details here - they recovered the gun from the UniSA School Of Natural And Built Environments building..... MY building.... arrghghhhh!!!!! Oh fuck I love this city :D
We've been emailed by about 15 different university staff telling us not to panic... heh.