Victorian Woman – Victoria

Police are searching for a gang of youths who stole a Victorian woman’s car at knifepoint just meters from her home, where her young daughter was sleeping.

The Preston mother, Lian, was leaving her house to go to the airport around 4:30 a.m. when she was attacked by a group of armed youths.

Up to four offenders arrived at the 41-year-old woman’s house in a stolen Toyota and forced her out of her Holden Astra under the threat of a knife.

“They opened my door in a second, screamed at me, and threatened me with a knife to get out of the car,” the Victorian woman said.

Lian, speaking through tears, said she thought the gang would abduct and harm her.

“I really thought I wouldn’t see my family again,” she stated. “They had a knife, and I was scared that if I reached the door, they would chase me and get into my house where my daughter was sleeping.”

Her husband woke up to the noise and tried to chase the thieves, but they fled in Lian’s car, taking her luggage and handbag with them.

Lian says she is speaking out to warn the community to stay vigilant and keep car doors locked at all times.

“More needs to be done, and perhaps harsher penalties should be enforced,” she said. “We should all feel safe in our space, in our home, in our street, in our suburb.”