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Thief's shocking act to re-steal car in Queensland towing yard

A brazen thief remains on the run after using a stolen front-end loader to steal a stolen car from a towing yard in Central Queensland.

Astonishing CCTV footage shows the burglar driving the front-end loader into a tow truck in Rockhampton and pushing it out of the way in order to access the Holden Commodore.

Before making an escape in the stolen sedan, he sets fire to the front-end loader, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage.

“In my 20 years as a detective, I have never seen something like this,” Detective Senior Sergeant Luke Peachy told Channel Seven.

The stolen front-end loader
The thief used a stolen front-end loader to make their way into the towing yard in Rockhampton. Source: Channel Seven

“They obviously were very resolute in getting back into that yard and actually stealing that specific car.”

“They’ve moved a probably three-tonne truck in the process.”

Det Sr Sgt Peachy says the incident on May 15 began seven days earlier when the sedan was stolen from a car yard in North Rockhampton.

It was found four days later and taken to a local holding yard in Parkhurst.

At around 5.40am on May 15, the thief drove a front-end loader, stolen from a local business earlier that night, through the front gate of the towing yard.

The tow truck being pushed to the side by the stolen front-end loader
The thief used the stolen front-end loader to push the tow truck out of the way of a group of cars. Source: Channel Seven

Det Sr Sgt Peachy is now appealing for anyone who may have seen either the front-end loader or the grey Holden Commodore sedan, with registration plates 038 YSG, to come forward.

“I guess the fact that they were able to drive that front-end loader really shows that they’ve got some knowledge on how to use heavy machinery, so I guess it narrows it down a little bit to people who work in that industry,” he said.

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