Story perspectives

Police arrest driver after Toyota rammed MP Helen Haines

By Drooid · Oct 20, 2026, 10:04 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

Brendan Nugent Arrested

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said a white Toyota Land Cruiser deliberately struck independent MP Helen Haines.
Witnesses reported the driver made a U-turn, rammed Haines, then reversed and hit her again.
Police arrested 43-year-old Tarrawingee man Brendan Nugent and recovered a knife from his vehicle.
Haines underwent emergency surgery at Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital, where one leg was amputated and the other is being saved.

Summary

Lachlan Hunter Calls Review

A community vigil was held at Holy Trinity Anglican Cathedral in Wangaratta at 1 pm.
WA Nationals MP Lachlan Hunter called for a statewide review of electorate office security measures.
Police established an operation at a Tarrawingee property 12 km from Haines’s office.
ASIO director-general Mike Burgess warned that the risk of political violence was already ‘flashing red’.
Women for Election said nearly 90 % of female politicians face online abuse, deterring candidacy.

History

Historical Context

The 2024 knife assault on Australian MP Helen Haines recalls the 16 June 2016 murder of British MP Jo Cox, the first killing of a sitting UK MP since Conservative Ian Gow was slain by the IRA in 1990. Cox’s attacker, far-right extremist Thomas Mair, was convicted in November 2016 and given a whole-life order, fueling ongoing debate about extremist rhetoric and parliamentary security.

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Brendan Nugent Arrested

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said a white Toyota Land Cruiser deliberately struck independent MP Helen Haines.
Witnesses reported the driver made a U-turn, rammed Haines, then reversed and hit her again.
Police arrested 43-year-old Tarrawingee man Brendan Nugent and recovered a knife from his vehicle.
Haines underwent emergency surgery at Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital, where one leg was amputated and the other is being saved.

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