By Zak Wheeler For Daily Mail Australia
11:29 20 May 2023, updated 11:32 20 May 2023
- A driver has been arrested after a suburban joyride
- He allegedly stole Alfa Romeo SUV and smashed into a van
- Witnesses detained driver at the scene before police arrived
A man has been charged after video emerged of an allegedly stolen Alpha Romeo narrowly missing pedestrians during a dangerous suburban joyride.
The 26-year-old driver collided with a van, mounted a curb and repeatedly smashed into a fence in Kingsgrove, south-west Sydney, at about 12pm on Wednesday.
After an hours-long chase, police halted their pursuit of the red Alpha Romeo SUV just moments before it ploughed into the front of a black Mercedes van.
The driver, who allegedly does not hold a licence, is facing six firearm and driving offences after being charged at Campsie Police Station on Wednesday.
In footage captured by onlookers, people chase the car as it erratically zig-zags down a sidewalk, eventually coming to a stop after repeatedly colliding with a fence.
Locals are seen dragging the driver out of the Alpha Romeo and detaining him on the footpath, with one man holding what appears to be a metal pole.
A passenger inside the Mercedes van said that neither he nor the driver knew what had hit them.
‘[The car] just came in, flew from the other side of the road and crashed into me and my brother-in-law. ‘He just kept going,’ Ayman Bassal told 7News.
‘We didn’t even see him – didn’t speak to him. He hit us, then he ran.’
The pursuit began on Wednesday after NSW Police officers approached the driver in Punchbowl in Sydney’s west, as he walked towards the Alfa Romeo.
The red SUV is believed to have been reported as stolen from a Pennant Hills home.
The car was seen speeding along Payten Avenue in Roselands just moments before it collided with the Mercedes van.
The SUV quickly reversed and sped away again before crashing into a fence on Vanessa Street in Kingsgrove multiple times.
Officers from St George Police Area Command then arrived to arrest the man as pedestrians restrained him.
Upon searching the driver, they found a BB air pistol hidden in his pants along with other items they believe to be stolen.
The driver is facing six charges, including two counts of stealing and driving without a licence. He appeared in Bankstown Local Court on Thursday.