A 15-year-old boy dressed in black combat gear had to be subdued with a taser after a dramatic grand final day confrontation with police outside the busy Flinders Street Station intersection.
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Witnesses have told of how the teenage boy had been driving erratically down Swanston Street in a green Toyota RAV 4, veering near pedestrians about 8am on Saturday morning.
The Knoxfield youth's rampage was cut short after he appeared to ram his vehicle into the back of a tram on Swanston Street, then reversed at high speed towards the station, coming to a screeching halt in the intersection.
A witness sprinted towards him with an oBike, which was thrown behind the car to block its path. Another witness banged on the driver's window, berating him, as other horrified onlookers called the police.
The driver then got out of the vehicle and confronted six police. One officer attempted to use pepper spray to subdue the youth, but the youth was wearing a helmet and strong winds made the effort to subdue him ineffective.
The youth charged the officer, knocking him to the ground and appeared to strike him with a baton-like object.
Several more officers then crowded the boy, discharging a taser to bring him under control.
Victoria Police Acting Superintendent Wayne Newman said the youth has been taken to hospital and was being assessed.
He said the youth had a history of mental health issues and that police were not treating the incident as terror-related.
"At this stage counter-terrorism links is not something we are looking at in any depth. We certainly scan the horizon for links of that nature, however at the moment we are treating it simply as a mental health issue," Acting Superintendent Newman said.
The boy was dressed in clothing described as being "not out of place in an army disposal store" and was armed with what police would only describe as an "implement".
A Facebook user posted this dramatic video showing the car screeching to a halt in the intersection of Flinders Street and Swanston Street, which captures the moment police managed to subdue the youth..
Police have said they do not know if the driver was intending to harm pedestrians. Witnesses have been reported as saying that the man appeared to be trying to hit people.
"He was certainly armed with a weapon ... but I have no information that he was actually trying to attack pedestrians," Superintendent Newman said.
Witnesses have told the ABC that the man appeared to be goading the police to "come for him".
Jolon Cooke was working for a company setting up equipment for the grand final in Federation Square, when he said the man in the car drove at him.
"He swerved and tried to run me over," Mr Cooke told the ABC.
"He dead set tried to kill me. He came out of the car with a black baton, full head-to-toe black military gear, took a backpack out of the car to simulate a bomb and then he was telling the cops to come for him."
Fabian Wright, who was staffing a promotional stall in front of Federation Square, said the youth was driving "up and down" Swanston Street and Flinders Street, aiming for people.
"[I saw] a guy driving erratically, Flinders Street, Swanston Street - every direction," Mr Wright said. "Up and down, skidding the car, up and down skidding the car."
When asked if he was trying to attack people, Mr Wright said: "Yes, with his car. When he was driving, he was aiming for people ... swerving into people.
"People were screaming."
Mr Wright said the man continued for about five minutes before coming to a stop in the middle of the Flinders Street and Swanston Street intersection.
"He got out of the car and attacked the police ... with a steel baton," Mr Wright said. "Then they tasered him."
The RAV4 vehicle being towed away from the scene. Photo: Danie Sprague
Superintendent Newman praised a members of the community who threw a share bike behind the driver, but said police encouraged Melburnians to call triple zero in that situation.
"Victorians won't stand by idly," he said.
Superintendent Newman said police responded to triple zero calls made by the public within minutes.
"Because of the actual time of the morning I don't think there was a lot of pedestrian traffic. I don't think he posed a great threat," he said.
The intersection was closed to traffic until about 11am while the bomb response unit inspected the scene and police towed away the RAV 4.
Bomb squad inspecting car on Flinders Street. Entire intersection shut down @theage pic.twitter.com/ZUhrQVhbwt??? Ebony Bowden (@ebonybowden) September 29, 2017
For help or information contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, or beyondblue on 1300 224 636.
