Hoons are captured by police chopper doing burnouts dangerously close to hundreds of onlookers – before cops seize their cars
- Queensland police had commenced an ongoing operation to target hooning
- A number of cars had been impounded and dangerous driving charges issued
- Police released Polair footage of an event held in Upper Coomera on April 10
- It followed an earlier gathering of 1000 people where police were attacked
The crackdown on hoons by Queensland Police continues after they seized six cars, issued 79 infringement notices and charged five people with dangerous driving as part of anti-hooning Operation Tango Vinyl.
Polair footage released by police shows hoons doing circle-work next to spectators on Saturday night at Upper Coomera on the northern Gold Coast.
South-east Queensland had experienced a number of dangerous hooning events in recent weeks, including a meeting of more than 1000 people at the northern end of the Gold Coast at Pimpama on April 10.
Polair footage shows a car doing circle-work at Upper Coomera at a hoon event on April 10
The event was smaller than the one that attracted 1000 people the previous Easter weekend
Police were pelted with projectiles, including fireworks, at the gathering in behaviour Gold Coast District Acting Chief Superintendent Geoff Sheldon described afterwards as ‘blatantly criminal and clearly dangerous’.
A smaller gathering of people and cars at Upper Coomera was disrupted by police on Saturday night.
Police also charged a 21-year-old with two counts of dangerous operation of a vehicle, two counts of failing to stop at a red light, and one count each of offences involving registration, possession of explosives and fail to stop.
He had allegedly been driving a Ford sedan which was seen driving dangerously in Molendinar and later, at high speed and through multiple red lights on Southport Nerang Road.
Around 1.30am the car was again seen travelling at high speed on the incorrect side of the road at Murrumba Downs, before the driver attempted to flee from the car at Redcliffe.
Police have so far seized six cars as part of the operation, each impounded for 90 days
Down to the rims: hoon activity has been on the rise throughout south-east Queensland
Operation Tango Vinyl is an ongoing police effort to crackdown on dangerous hoon activity
‘Police investigations remain ongoing into this incident, as well as other matters across the Gold Coast from the previous weekends, and we expect to take further enforcement action,’ said Acting Chief Superintendent Geoff Sheldon.
‘You’ll be targeted if you’re attending these events whether you’re a driver or just a spectator,’ said Sheldon.
‘A lot of our arrests have come from phones we’ve seized and footage found on mobile phones.
The tarmac tells the tale in the aftermath of a hoon gathering in an Upper Coomera street
‘Some of the footage has astounded police,’ he said. ‘One driver was clocked at 170 km/k in a 60km/h zone.
It’s a privilege to drive on the roads in Queensland and we’re happy to take that privilege off you if you’re not going to give a damn about your own safety or that of anyone else in the community.’
Advertisement
