A woman is in custody following two alleged carjackings and three attempted carjackings this afternoon in Taylors Lakes, Victoria Police say.
The incident began about 4pm when the woman, armed with a knife approached a 68-year-old woman in her car, in the carpark of a Melton Highway shopping centre and demanded money.
After she was unsuccessful in obtaining money, it will be alleged the woman made the lady drive her towards an ATM at the shopping centre where an amount of money was withdrawn.
Leaving behind the traumatised victim she moved to another nearby car which she jumped into.
There, she made the 76-year-old woman drive her towards the perimeter of the shopping centre carpark and demanded she hand over an amount of cash, which she did.
The woman walked off to a nearby fastfood outlet located on Melton Highway where she entered a vehicle belonging to the third victim, a 52-year-old woman. That woman was accompanied by two children aged 14 and 12, and after the offender realised police were being called, she fled on foot without stealing anything.
The fourth victim was a man sitting in the driver’s seat of his vehicle near the fastfood outlet and despite being threatened with the knife, she was not able to either get in, or steal the 28-year-old man’s car so she fled.
Police responded quickly and spotted the woman in the vicinity of McCubbin Drive where, still armed with a knife, she jumped into a fifth car driven by a 34-year-old woman.
Police approached the car, extracted the female as she resisted arrest and took her into custody.
The 32-year-old Deer Park resident remains in custody and has a long night ahead of her as detectives prepare a range of charges.
None of the victims or police were physically injured in the incident which lasted for about 20 minutes.
Anyone who witnessed the incidents unfold and are yet to speak to police are urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
