ACT Policing’s Operation TORIC has marked its 500th apprehension with the dramatic discovery of a 27-year-old man hiding in the boot of a vehicle during a traffic stop on Kingsford Smith Drive.

About 8pm on Monday 5 August, police conducted a traffic stop on a silver Honda City sedan on Kingsford Smith Drive, Florey. A 27-year-old man was subsequently located hiding in the boot of the vehicle and arrested.

He faced court on Tuesday 6 August, charged with breach of parole and possess prohibited weapon, while further charges are anticipated.

Since this time, Operation TORIC has continued to proactively target recidivist offenders in the ACT, arresting a 16-year-old boy for serious driving offences on Sunday 11 August, and a 35-year-old man for threat to kill and assault occasioning actual bodily harm on Monday 12 August.  

Since being established in August 2022, Operation TORIC has laid more than 1470 offences targeting recidivist offenders involved in motor vehicle thefts, burglaries, robberies, associated dangerous driving and other crimes in the ACT.

Of those charged, 200 were on bail at the time of their arrest, while 118 were subject to conditions such as Good Behaviour Orders, Intensive Corrections Orders, or on Parole.

Officer in Charge of Operation TORIC, Detective Acting Inspector Jason Dziubinski said police will continue to target this type of offending.

“Operation TORIC has been incredibly successful in targeting offences such as motor vehicle theft and dangerous driving, contributing to making the Canberra community safer,” Detective Acting Inspector Dziubinski said.

“These offences place innocent members of the community at risk, not just those who are engaged in dangerous, criminal behaviour.  

“Our apprehension numbers from Operation TORIC indicate these offences are trending down, with around 300 apprehensions in TORIC’s first year, and around 200 in the past year.  

“While apprehension numbers have dropped year-on-year, this likely indicates reduced incidents of offending, in tandem with the fact that individuals engaged in these acts have been arrested and put before the courts.” 

Police urge anyone who may have information regarding stolen motor vehicles or other offending to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website.