Victoria’s deputy premier James Merlino says police are investigating the pursuit of a fleeing driver on the Tullamarine Freeway

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

The owners of nine vehicles damaged after they were used by police as a makeshift roadblock to stop a man fleeing will be left with the damage bill.

Victoria police used the vehicles to create the roadblock on Sunday to stop a man driving a van allegedly full of stolen items down the Tullamarine Freeway.

A police vehicle had managed to get ahead of the van and deploy stop sticks to deflate the tyres and the cars were stopped in traffic after them.

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A Victoria police spokeswoman said 10 vehicles had been damaged as a result, including that of the fleeing driver’s, and all of the vehicle owners had been informed they would have to seek compensation through their insurance companies.

But, according to Fairfax Media, one woman was not insured and her car was written off. She was reportedly still in the car when it was used by police to stop the fleeing man.

A friend of the woman told Fairfax: “If it’s something that’s happened as a direct result of their [the police’s] actions then they should be responsible for it.

“If it was a random stolen car, bad luck. But they chose to use her car as a roadblock.”

The woman “initially got out of her car but was told by a policeman to get back in”, the friend said.

Victoria police told Guardian Australia that, as a police vehicle did not cause the damage to the woman’s car, the police insurance policy did not apply and the woman would receive no compensation.

Police would not comment further, as the case is before Melbourne magistrates court, but said only one of the vehicle owners was uninsured.

But on Tuesday morning, the deputy premier, James Merlino, confirmed Victoria police were investigating the circumstances and whether the vehicles had been deliberately used as a roadblock.

“In terms of the practice itself these are operational decisions of Victoria police and rightly so,” Merlino said. “It’s not for a member of the government or politicians to discuss the merits of operational decisions including blockades.”