How my $350,000 ute ended up dumped in Queensland river

A family’s holiday has been ruined after brazen thieves took off in their $350,000 ute before callously dumping it into crocodile-infested waters.

Victorian couple Linda and Stewart Gander had been fast asleep just metres from their caravan in Yeppoon, on Queensland’s Capricorn Coast, when a group of teenagers snuck inside and stole the keys to their Ford F350.

The vehicle retails for about $250,000, but it has had about $100,000 worth of modifications. 

Ms Gander recalled hearing the alleged thieves shout ‘we just stole your car you motherf***ers’ before they sped away and rammed the gate of the caravan park.

The decked-out ute, which had Mr Gander’s wallet, credit cards and carpentry tools inside was later abandoned in the Fitzroy River, the Courier Mail reports.  

A major rescue operation was launched on Tuesday to retrieve the stolen vehicle from the bottom of the muddy river. 

Queensland Police, officers from the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) and local tow truck operators worked together on the rescue mission. 

Police told the ‘devastated’ couple the ute (pictured with the caravan) was spotted doing 150km/hour at Emu Park and ramming into several vehicles, including a cop car

Rescuers first used magnets tied to string to locate the vehicle before they connected cables and hauled the vehicle from the thick sludge. 

QPWS officers kept an eye out for approaching crocodiles after watersports on the river had to be cancelled following several reported sightings. 

One of the ute’s front wheels had just made it above the surface before rescuers began losing light and the boat ramp became too slippery. 

The tension cables snapped twice before efforts were abandoned at about 6pm on Tuesday with the mission to resume at low tide on Wednesday. 

Police told the ‘devastated’ couple the ute was spotted doing 150km/hour at Emu Park and ramming into several vehicles, including a cop car. 

Mr Gander, the managing director of Timberline Construction, said his ‘pride and joy’ was in considerably good condition. 

The couple had made the 20-hour drive from the town of Benalla, in Victoria’s High Country, for a family holiday on the Queensland coast. 

In another devastating twist, the family camping beside the Ganders were also robbed of their vehicle – a brand new Nissan Patrol. 

The family supported the Ganders as they watched their ute surface from the depths of the river on Tuesday.  

One of the ute’s front wheels had just made it above the surface before rescuers began losing light and the boat ramp became too slippery (pictured)

A Queensland Police spokesperson said three teenagers, aged 15, 16 and 17, have been charged. 

The 15-year-old has been charged with three counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle, enter premises, enter dwelling, possession of dangerous drug and utensil. 

The 17-year-old was charged with six counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle and one count each of enter premises, enter dwelling and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.

Both teens are scheduled to appear before the Rockhampton’s Children Court. 

The 16-year-old boy, from Rockhampton, will be dealt with under the provisions of the Youth Justice Act for similar matters. 

Queensland’s youth crime wave: Family whose car was stolen in broad daylight are targeted by hooded thieves for a second time in a week

By Jesse Hyland and Ben Talintyre For Daily Mail Australia

A family who had their car stolen in broad daylight following a break-in have been targeted by thieves just three days later – as a youth crime crisis grips Queensland.

Tom Miers and his family, who live in the Brisbane suburb of Hawthorne, became the target of hooded thieves for a second time in a single week.

Thieves broke into their house through a side door and took their car keys while Mr Miers, his wife and their children were at home during the day last Wednesday. 

They then went to the garage, started up their vehicle and smashed through the garage door as they reversed the car out of the driveway and took off.

The family’s home was hit again three days later, with a group of brazen thieves breaking into the garage on Saturday night.

Tom Miers and his wife (pictured) have had their Hawthorne home broken into twice in a single week by young thieves

Mr Miers was alerted by their presence after his car’s alarm went off. But by the time he got to his garage, he saw the thieves flee the scene. 

‘We saw them running down the street, just across the road,’ he told 9News. 

When police arrived at his home with dogs, they revealed to Mr Miers that this was the ‘seventh or eighth’ break-and-enter they had attended that night. 

Despite making two arrests following the car theft, police had told the Brisbane father that the thieves would likely return to his home.  

‘The police warned us they’d try and come back because they’ve got your house keys, they’ll have another go,’ Mr Miers said. 

A group of hooded youths wearing masks were seen walking the streets near his home shortly after the break-in.

They were caught on security camera footage from the home of local resident Brent Daniel, who only lives a couple of blocks away from Mr Miers. 

Mr Daniel expressed his frustration over the break-ins and theft in the Brisbane area.

‘Things need to change, and they need to change from the government,’ he said. 

Mr Miers is considering putting up floodlights and security cameras on his home and installing bollards to his driveway to deter criminals. 

Thieves broke into the Brisbane family’s home, took their car keys and smashed through their garage door as they escaped with their car

Three days later, a group of masked youths broke into Mr Miers’s garage again before fleeing the scene. They were captured on CCTV walking down a nearby street

It comes as statistics show Queensland‘s measures to dissuade youths from reoffending are failing with more than half re-offending within a year.

Annastacia Palaszczuk’s state government re-introduced a youth justice reform initiative in 2016, in an attempt to tackle the surging youth crime epidemic in the state.

However, worrying results from the last two years showed that more than 50 per cent of juveniles who went through the program committed crimes within the next year.

Restorative justice is a form of sentencing where offenders are ordered to meet those who they harmed in an attempt to get them to grasp the damage their actions caused and to put them off from committing future crimes.

However, in 2021 and 2022, of the more than 3400 youths who attended ‘restorative justice’ reoffended within a year.

Stats show QLD’s youth justice reform initiative which was reintroduced in an attempt to tackle the youth crime epidemic is failing as more than 50 per cent of participants are reoffending within a year (stock image)

The Palaszczuk Government re-introduced a youth justice reform initiative in 2016, in an attempt to tackle the surging youth crime epidemic in the state but many are reoffending or not even showing up to their ordered conference 

Data also showed that more than 4450 young offenders were ordered to attend the program in the last two years but almost 1000 never showed up.

The data from Youth Justice also revealed children aged 14 to 15 years old were most likely to be ordered to do the program.

The region of far North Queensland had the highest rate of reoffending, 57 per cent, followed by southwest Queensland, 56 per cent) and southeast Queensland, 53 per cent.

Those in the youngest bracket of 10 to 15 years old had the highest rate of reoffending with 57 per cent of them going on to commit at least one crime after partaking in the program.