Critical Incident Response Team members have arrested a man following a carjacking in Donnybrook this morning.
Police were made aware of the incident – on Eucalyptus Road – via a call to Triple Zero (000) from one of the victims about 12.20am.
Officers have been told a woman was with her partner and young child when they pulled over to the side of the road looking for a rest stop, when a man approached the vehicle from behind a shrub.
He got into the passenger side of the car and told the victim to drive.
A short time later the trio were dropped off by the offender outside the Northern Hospital, extremely shaken but not physically injured.
Members on patrol as part of Operation Phoenix spotting the silver Toyota and initiated a pursuit.
The vehicle, with assistance from the Air Wing, was pursued by members on the ground along the Hume Highway, Western Ring Road, Sydney Road and through the northern suburbs of Epping, Thomastown and Campbellfield.
The man was arrested shortly after when he drove into a service station on Centre Road in Tullamarine and surrendered peacefully to police.
The 26-year-old man from Donnybrook was taken to hospital and remains under police guard.
It is expected he will be interviewed by Banyule-Nillumbik Crime Investigation Unit in relation to the incident, once released.
Anyone who witnessed the incident or with dashcam footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
Operation Phoenix sees dedicated police patrols deployed across Melbourne every night from this Sunday, targeting serious and violent crime.
The operation has been running in Melbourne’s north-west since July, targeting offences such as arson, extortion and drive-by shootings, and in that time we’ve made more than 230 arrests and conducted around 10,000 hours of dedicated overnight patrols.
From tonight we’re expanding that model across all of metropolitan Melbourne and the CBD and expanding the focus to include all serious and violent crimes.
Our members will be out every night patrolling known hotspots, responding to incidents as they happen, and proactively disrupting criminal activity.
If you encounter immediate danger to yourself or others, call Triple Zero (000), or if you have information that could assist police call contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
