Man's terror after test drive leads to robbery at knifepoint
Online sellers are being warned to be vigilant after scam artists left a mother and son traumatised.
Victorian man Damien Bently told 7News he woke in the middle of the night with knives held to his throat by the same man who had taken his ute for a test drive earlier that day.
“He came around about 7pm, took the car for a test drive, I went with him,” Damien said.
“He seemed like a nice, genuine guy.”
But just three hours later, the man arrived with an accomplice.
“He kicked the door down and came into my bedroom and jumped on me in bed with two knives and demanding the ute keys,” Damien said.
“They pushed my parents against the wall and kicked our little dog.”
The thieves stole the keys to Damien’s car and his mother’s car.
However, a tracker device was installed in Damien’s ute, allowing police to monitor the car’s movements.
Two men, aged in their 20s, were arrested near Geelong. They been charged with aggravated burglary and theft of a motor vehicle.
“Very, very shaken,” Damien’s mother Karen Bentley said of the terrifying incident. “I feel for my son because I think this has affected him.”
Authorities say the incident is a reminder of why it’s important to never invite an online shopper to your own home.
Instead, online sellers are encouraged to meet potential buyers in a public space where everything can be captured on security cameras.
