Police have charged eight teenagers after tracking an allegedly stolen vehicle across the southeastern suburbs on Thursday morning.
Officers, including Operation Trinity units, caught sight of an allegedly stolen white Mercedes on Mimosa Street in Glen Waverley about 12.30am.
With the assistance of the Air Wing, units continued to follow the allegedly stolen vehicle along the Monash Freeway, to where stop sticks were successfully deployed about 2.10am.
Investigators allege that the Mercedes came to a stop on Tivendale Road in Officer.
Police swiftly moved in and arrested eight teens.
It is alleged the Mercedes was stolen from an address in Malvern about 4am on 24 July.
• A 13-year-old Dandenong boy has been charged with theft of motor vehicle, dangerous driving and unlicensed driving. He has been bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 16-year-old Dandenong boy has been charged with theft of motor vehicle and has been bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 15-year-old Dandenong boy has been charged with theft of motor vehicle and has been bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 17-year-old Frankston boy has been charged with theft of motor vehicle and has been bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 16-year-old Dandenong boy has been charged with theft of motor vehicle and has been bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 17-year-old Narre Warren boy has been charged with theft of motor vehicle and has been bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 17-year-old Cranbourne North boy was charged with theft of motor car and appeared before an out of sessions hearing and was bailed to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
• A 14-year-old Doveton boy was charged with theft of motor vehicle and remanded to appear at a Children’s Court at a later date.
Operation Trinity, which runs every single night until dawn is Victoria Police’s most well-resourced frontline policing operation at present.
There are 70 additional police rostered each night, on top of existing patrols.
This includes frontline officers, Highway Patrol members, the Dog Squad, Public Order Response Team, and Air Wing.
As a result of this intense focus, police have made over 1,400 arrests relating to burglaries and car thefts – with the overwhelming majority of these offenders’ children. A further 6,600 people have been processed for other offences detected by police working nightshift across the Trinity area of operations.
When interviewed, offenders are telling us they will walk up and down a street until they find a door or window that is unlocked.
While police will continue to patrol known hotspots every evening until dawn as part of Trinity, we are also calling on the community to play their part and lock their properties.
