Tradie who clung to would-be thieves' car bonnet accuses driver of attempted ... - Herald Sun

UPDATE: A TRADIE who clung to the bonnet of a moving car has accused the driver of attempted murder.

Harry Hicks, 24, and his girlfriend Courtney Deacon, 21, were this morning recovering after Mr Hicks caught thieves attempting to steal tools from his Toyota Hilux tradesman’s trailer.

The Plenty man and his partner were returning to their Wallaby Court home just before midnight when they noticed a dark Holden Commodore vehicle parked beside his car.

The carpenter has declared his attackers “disgusting” and plans to press charges if police can find them.

“It’s just disgusting, I don’t have any time for these people,” he said.

“If they’d just stopped and said sorry mate it wouldn’t have been so much of an issue.

“What sort of trouble would you get into if you are a first time hit-and-run?”

“It’s quite a serious offence – it’s attempted murder,” he said.

The couple arrived back at Ms Deacon’s home around midnight last night to find some of his tool boxes on the ground next to his tool trailer.

When they stopped the car to investigate, a man hiding behind the trailer bolted across the road into a waiting Holden Commodore.

Mr Hicks said he acted on impulse by standing in front of the vehicle, and glared at the men inside.

“It was just more instinct, I just wanted to get my tools back,” Mr Hicks said.

The men initially accelerated towards him as he tried to block their escape, but stopped just in front of him when he refused to move.

But when they accelerated again Mr Hicks said he was forced onto the bonnet of the car and left clinging to the windscreen wipers.

“I just play it over in my head, over and over again – it’s pretty scare being on the bonnet of someone’s car who wants you off,” he said.

“I was on my knees on the bonnet holding on to the windscreen wipers and I was trying my hardest to rip the windscreen wiper off.”

Mr Hicks said he was on the car for about five seconds, but in that time was carried more than 50 metres up the road.

He said the car reached speeds of 50km/h while swerving violently to shake him off.

Eventually, about 20 seconds later, Mr Hicks realised the danger he was in and let go of the car.

“They were going faster and faster, we would have been going 50km/h when I jumped off,” he said.

And despite it being a snap decision, Mr Hicks said he would do exactly the same thing if confronted with the scene again.

“I don’t regret what I have done, I would do it again,” he said.

Mr Hicks estimates his tool collection cost him about $30,000.

“You definitely build a relationship up with your tools, there’s definitely sentimental value – they have much more sentimental value to them,” Mr Hicks said.

Nothing was stolen during the incident.

However, he did think that the knee imprints in the bonnet of the Holden Commodore would make the car stand out.

The male offenders are both believed to be in their mid 20s, with the driver described as having a slim build with brown collar-length hair.

Police are appealing for witnesses and anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit www.crimestoppers.com.au.

- with Angus Thompson

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