Man charged over deadly highway rampage in Queensland
Towle allegedly fled the scene of the crash while armed with a shotgun – shooting a 62-year-old man who stopped his vehicle to help – and took off in his car.
It is alleged the Tewantin, Noosa, man then threatened a 16-year-old girl and her parents in another vehicle, but was soon arrested at about 12.50pm near Landsborough.
Body-worn camera footage released by police shows officers with weapons drawn ordering Towle to lie on the ground before arresting him. A loaded shotgun was allegedly found inside the stolen vehicle.
Towle has been charged with armed robbery, acts intended to cause grievous bodily harm, unlawful wounding, dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death, and multiple weapons and drug offences.
Police said Towle was injured in the crash, and he was initially in hospital under police guard following his arrest.
He remains in custody and did not appear when his case was briefly mentioned in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
There was no application for bail and his case is due back in court on June 30.
Speaking to reporters outside of court, Towle's lawyer Ben Rynderman said he was limited in what he could say due to confidentiality.
'This is of course a very serious matter,' he said.
'It's obviously very serious and tragic and it will be treated with the seriousness and the gravity that it is.'
He confirmed Towle had returned to the watch-house from hospital without needing further medical care.
'I imagine police will compile a comprehensive brief of evidence that will be very detailed and we will assess that brief on its merits,' he said.
Tributes have flowed for Mollee in the wake of the Bruce Highway crash.
The 22-year-old was a fourth-year chemical engineering student at the University of Queensland and was only days away from completing her degree.
Her mother, Amanda Chippendale, said she last spoke to her daughter on Easter Sunday morning.
'A happy Easter call, catch up,' she told the Courier Mail.
'Jocey and I catch up every day or so on the phone or texting.'
'My heart is shattered. We're broken into a million pieces,' she said.
'Gone but not forgotten, my baby girl.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
1News
01-06-2025
- 1News
Woman dies after Friday crash in Port Waikato
A woman has died in hospital following a crash in Port Waikato on Friday night, bringing the preliminary King's Birthday road toll to four. Emergency services were called to Tuakau Bridge-Port Waikato Rd at around 6.10pm on May 30 to reports of a single vehicle rolling. Three people were taken to hospital, two by ambulance who were moderately and seriously injured and one by helicopter who was critically injured. The critically injured woman died in hospital yesterday, police said. The serious crash unit attended and the circumstances of the crash remain under investigation. King's Birthday road toll stands at four ADVERTISEMENT The death brings the preliminary road toll for the King's Birthday holiday weekend to four. A two-vehicle crash in Northland near Waiomio, south of Kawakawa, killed one person just after midnight on Saturday. A man died in Waipa, Waikato, after his vehicle rolled into a paddock on Saturday morning at around 7.40am. One person died and four were injured on Auckland's Northwestern Motorway early on Sunday morning when a car flipped onto its roof. The official Easter holiday road toll period was from 4pm on Friday to 6am on Tuesday. Last year, three people died on New Zealand roads during the same period.
1News
01-06-2025
- 1News
One killed in horror crash on Auckland motorway, four injured
A man has died and four others are injured after a horror crash on Auckland's Northwestern Motorway overnight. Officers "became aware of a car on its roof in the citybound lanes" on State Highway 16, around Pt Chevalier, shortly after 11.05pm, a police spokesperson said. "One person had been ejected from the vehicle and another was trapped inside it, who was found to be deceased." Footage from the scene showed officers inspecting an overturned red car. St John said it responded with four ambulances, two rapid response units, and two managers. ADVERTISEMENT "Our crews assessed and treated four patients. One in a serious condition who was transported to Middlemore Hospital, one in a serious condition, one in a moderate condition, and one in a minor condition who were transported to Auckland City Hospital." Footage from the scene showed an upturned red car. (Source: 1News) The serious crash unit attended the scene, and the motorway was reopened around 3.20am. Vehicle traffic and bus services were diverted during the incident. King's Birthday road tolls stands at four A woman died in hospital on Saturday after a single-vehicle crash in Port Waikato on Friday night. A two-vehicle crash in Northland near Waiomio, south of Kawakawa, killed one person just after midnight on Saturday. A man died in Waipa, Waikato, after his vehicle rolled into a paddock on Saturday morning at around 7.40am. The official Easter holiday road toll period was from 4pm on Friday to 6am on Tuesday. Last year, three people died on New Zealand roads during the same period.
Otago Daily Times
15-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Women ‘trampled' at Octagon bar
The Dunedin Social Club. Photo: Gregor Richardson. Four Dunedin women were stood on, trampled and trapped under a packed crowd of dancers at a popular Dunedin nightclub. Now the four women, all in their 20s, are calling on the Dunedin Social Club to take action. However, the bar's owner has said on the nights the women were crushed, the club was not at capacity and the number of people inside was monitored. On two separate Saturday nights, one during O Week and another over the Easter weekend, the women found themselves under the feet of dancers on the Dunedin Social Club floor. When Dunedin resident Anna went to the club in O Week it was packed and extremely hot. She fell on the dance floor and could not get back up, and found herself being "trampled on for about 30 seconds". "Eventually, some lads managed to grab me off the floor." She said she was "swallowed whole by the mass of people". Anna did not return until the Saturday of Easter weekend, when she was again trampled. "I only went because it was the only place open ... I just thought 'there's no chance this would happen again'." She found herself on the ground and was again pulled back on to her feet. She had not been to any Octagon nightclub since. Her friend Olivia also found herself on the ground on the same night. "It was so full where I was I didn't even immediately fall to the floor, but eventually I did. "I was so dizzy I couldn't get back up." Eventually one of her friends helped her. Getting out of the club was also difficult — it took Olivia about 10 minutes to make it outside due to the stream of people coming in and out of the only door. Another woman, Hayley, was trampled by the crowd on the Saturday of O Week. "It was so hot, and so sweaty ... it seemed like they shouldn't have had so many people in there." Hayley said the dance floor was "packed and pushy", to a level she had not seen before. "It was really fast — one second I was up, the next second I was flat on the ground. "I was struggling to breathe." One of her flatmates was also pushed to the ground at the same time. Neither has been back since. Anna had a bruised leg and stomach, Olivia was kneed in the head several times and had bruised ribs and Hayley had a golf ball-sized lump on her head. Alcohol harm prevention officer Sergeant Steve Jones said any issues in regards to safety should be reported to the duty manager. However, if people did not get a good response, they could talk to police. Cook Brothers Bars owner James Arnott said the Dunedin Social Club's maximum capacity was 250 people and the number of people inside was monitored. He said while the dance floor was busy, there was a lot of space to the right of the bar. "We monitor the numbers going into the venue overall and we do our best to move people around, but if people want to go right up to the front where the DJ is playing, we can't stop them going up there." Dunedin Social Club duty manager Joe Presley said Easter Saturday was a very busy night, particularly around the dance floor and exit. He said that area could "bottle-neck". Due to the venue closing at midnight, everyone was leaving around the same time, which could cause congestion. He said the bar would love to hear from the injured people to see what they could do differently or what they could rectify.
