Teens have escaped uninjured after allegedly stealing and crashing a 4WD near Maryborough, one week after three women were killed in a horror crash allegedly caused by a 13yo.
The 71-year-old, who asked not to be identified, was sleeping at his Urangan home when his home was borken into about 3am on Sunday.
His car keys, wallet and a fruit bowl, which held his hearing aids, were stolen.
After waking and reporting the car missing about 6.30am, the man put a post on social media and was soon told that his car had been seen driving erratically.
His thoughts went to a horror crash in Maryborough on April 30, the week before his car was stolen.
In a separate incident, police allege that a 13-year-old boy was driving a stolen car at the time of the crash which claimed the lives of 52-year-old Hervey Bay nurse Sheree Robertson, former Riverside Christian College student Kelsie Davies, 17, and Reach Church pastor Michale Chandler, 29, at Saltwater Creek Rd in Maryborough.
The 13-year-old was treated for an ankle injury.
The car was a write off after the crash at Poona, but the teens had been left without a scratch.
Two hours after the man’s car was reported missing to police, he was told it had been involved in a crash near Poona.
The Landcruiser had hit a tree before rolling into a ditch.
The man said he was reduced to tears when his car was stolen and he thought “if they killed somebody in my car that would kill me”.
He said his daughter died in a car crash 25 years ago, and this week’s incident had brought back those memories.
He was not sure how the teens gained access to his home, and was confident it had been locked.
He said it scared him to know that the teens had been in his room while he slept.
“Just laying there, you’re an easy target,” he said.
The man said his car was a write off, but the teens had been left “without a scratch”.
The man said despite being insured, he would still take a financial hit after the crash, particularly with the loss of his hearing aids, which cost $3000.
“It’s the inconvenience of the whole thing,” he said.
A spokeswoman from the Queensland Police Service said officers were called to reports of a single car crash along Maryborough-Cooloola Road in Tin Can Bay, 10kms south of Poona, at 8am on Sunday, May 7.
“Upon arrival, police located an abandoned vehicle that had rolled over,” she said.
“Three teens were located nearby a short time later and were taken into custody without incident.
“A 14-year-old Nikenbah boy charged with one count each of enter dwelling and commit, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, driving of a motor vehicle without a driver licence.
“A 15-year-old Urangan boy charged with one count each of enter dwelling and commit, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and possessing dangerous drugs (cannabis).
“A 15-year-old Monkland boy charged with one count each of enter dwelling and commit and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.”
All three have been denied police bail to appear at the Maryborough Childrens Court at a later date.
The man praised the work of the police.
“They have kept me informed and offered me help – I can’t speak more highly,” he said.