Car thief ‘tried to run me over’

“I HAD to dive behind a telegraph pole.”

A Townsville man has recounted his near death experience, after he was hit by a stolen white LandCruiser and then had his car rammed twice (pictured) yesterday morning.

Alan Berry was on his way to work about 5.30am on Ross River Rd when he saw a car lose control in front of him.

“It all started to unfold in front of me near Gollogly Lane, a car came across the road and lost it and spun out,” Mr Berry said.

“I’ve pulled off to the side of the road and a lad has taken off across the road, there was a lady screaming out at the house up the road and I went to see her.

“Then a white Landcruiser was coming towards me – I thought it was a concerned citizen.

“He actually hit me, he tried to run me over.” “I had to dive behind the telegraph pole, he wasn’t going fast enough because he was on the footpath, but he still hit me.

“I could see the kid in the car, I was six inches from him, I could see his face.

“I didn’t know what to think, it was a situation I’ve never been in before.”

He said he was starting to get really worried about what was going to happen.

“He drove off the footpath and drove over the median strip and hit my car on the driver’s side.

“He then spun around and drove straight at my passenger side.

“Then he just drove off like nothing happened.” Still in shock, Mr Berry said he wasn’t sure how he was coping.

“It’s my only car. I’m a single dad, I use it to pick my kids up, what am I going to do?

“I’m not insured. I’ve only just got it after my last car blew up.

“These little sh--s just don’t care about the damage they do to other people’s lives.

“I’m devastated, that’s my primary form of transport to pick up my kids. I’m not insured, I just don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Mr Berry said he was in the same motorcycle club as Jennifer Board who was killed in February this year.

Ms Board was killed when she was struck by a car that lost control on Ross River Rd after it allegedly rammed a stolen vehicle.

The man behind the wheel, Chris Hughes, has been charged with her murder.

Four people in the alleged stolen car have also been charged for their involvement.

“What’s it going to take for change to happen? “Someone is going to have to get killed, whether it’s one of them, or an innocent member of the public.

“Whether that will do it or not, I don’t know. “And what if they get arrested, how’s that going to help me, and what’s that going to achieve?”