Rachel Lang
A quick-thinking Australian man has taken matters into his own hands after arriving home to discover a woman was attempting to steal his car.
In what could be the weirdest ever citizen's arrest, Queensland man Brendan Mills trapped the alleged car thief by using his forklift to trap her inside the vehicle.
Speaking to Sunrise, the Waterford West man said: "I gave the person or persons [plenty of chances to run].
"I didn't know who was in the car - there could have been five blokes in there - [but] I asked them many times to get out of the car.
Advert
"You know, 'we’re home, ya busted'."
He said that the person in the red Volkswagen Polo wouldn't get out so he had to think quickly.
"I went okay, I’ve got an alternative option here. So I grabbed the keys and picked the car up," he told Sunrise.
The automotive worker had his forklift parked beside the car so he simply drove the machine forward and lifted the Volkswagen Polo off its wheels.
Advert
The woman became trapped inside and Mills then called police.
The alleged thief was unable to open the doors of the car due to the positioning of the forklift prongs.
Police video captured at the scene showed an officer opening the door of the car after it was lowered by Mills, saying 'out you get' to the woman inside.
Mills put his quick-thinking down to the rush of adrenaline and the need to protect his daughters, who were with him.
Advert
"I had to act as safely as possible for me and my family," he told the Channel 7 programme.
"I’m quite comfortable on me trusty forklift here, so what better way to do it?"
Security footage seen by the Daily Mail showed a woman wandering onto the south Brisbane property at 5.20pm on June 5.
According to police, she went into the house while the family was out, showered, and helped herself to clothes she found inside.
A 24-year-old woman was arrested at the property and charged with burglary and unlawful use of a motor vehicle, a Queensland police statement said.
Advert
While his unusual choice at thwarting a would-be thief was effective, Queensland Police urged people to steer clear of attempting a citizen's arrest for safety reasons.
"To ensure community safety, police recommend members of the public not engage in methods of disrupting criminal activity which may involve risk of personal harm or further legal recourse," they said in a statement.