Police have charged a man after a Toyota LandCruiser was driven through a Melbourne shopping centre on Wednesday afternoon.
No-one was injured in the incident at the Northland Shopping Centre in Preston in the city’s north.
Police said the car was stolen from an address in Ivanhoe East, and that it sped through the centre while evading police just after 4pm on Wednesday.
They said investigators arrested a 27-year-old man from East Melbourne on Thursday morning.
“It is believed an electronic key reprogramming tool was used to steal the LandCruiser without the vehicle’s keys,” police said in a statement, adding that such a tool was seized during the arrest.
Police said the man was charged with seven counts, including two counts of aggravated and intentional exposure of police officer to risk by driving, reckless conduct endangering life and theft of a motor vehicle.
He will appear before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
They said the man would be interviewed by detectives and that they were not looking for anyone else in relation to the incident.
Earlier on Thursday, investigators said they had found the car dumped in nearby Northcote just after 5pm on Wednesday.
