Shots fired at shops after cops rammed

DRAMATIC scenes unfolded at an Upper Coomera shopping centre yesterday afternoon when an alleged car thief rammed police, before officers opened fire.

About 4.50pm an off-duty policeman was at the shopping centre on the corner of Commercial St and Kristins Lane when he spotted a car he believed was stolen.

He alerted local police who arrived to the scene quickly, but were greeted with an allegedly aggressive response.

The driver of the car, believed to be stolen, began to ram the two responding police vehicles.

During the ramming, which extensively damaged the police cars, officers shot into the tyres of the offending vehicle.

Two people were taken into police custody, with one needing transport to the Gold Coast University Hospital for minor injuries.

A crime scene was set-up at the shopping centre car park, metres from a newly opened Coles supermarket.

Several locals took to social media to voice their shock.

Northern Gold Coast mum, Shannon Mills, wrote, “I was too busy trying to keep my kids safe, while they shot at the vehicle to try to stop him. If they hadn’t shot out the tyres he would have rammed the police car into mine”.

She told the Bulletin police attempted to block the stolen car, before being rammed.

“A police officer went to the driver’s side, trying to remove the people inside, that’s when the driver slammed the ute into reverse and slammed into the police car behind ... then decided to go forward and slam the other car,” Ms Mills said.

“He was trying to push the police car out of the way with the bull bar, by the look of it ... that’s when police fired three shots into the tyres.”

The Ethical Standards Command is investigating and police will not release further information at this time.