Australian MP Helen Haines critically injured after being hit by a car in what the PM calls a deliberate attack
Independent MP Helen Haines, 65, is in a critical condition after a car struck her outside her Wangaratta office in Victoria. A 43-year-old driver was arrested, a knife was found in the vehicle and a joint counter-terrorism team is investigating.
Helen Haines, the 65-year-old independent member of Australia's federal parliament for Indi, was critically injured on Monday afternoon when a white Toyota LandCruiser struck her outside her electorate office on Murphy Street in Wangaratta, Victoria. Victoria Police said she was taken to hospital with critical injuries; she was flown to Melbourne for emergency surgery for severe injuries to her lower body. Her family thanked first responders and asked for privacy.
Police said the driver, a 43-year-old man from Tarrawingee, was detained by a passerby and arrested at the scene. Officers found and seized a knife inside the vehicle. Police said they were still investigating whether the act was intentional and whether the two knew each other, and major collision investigators were sent to the scene.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the incident was not an accident and appeared to be a deliberate act, while stressing that the motive was not yet known. A joint counter-terrorism taskforce involving Victoria Police, the Australian Federal Police and the security agency ASIO has been activated. Albanese praised Haines as a respected and hardworking member of parliament and called for the political temperature to be lowered.