Rampage in the City West Perth, Western Australia, Australia
By Lazarus_68 on 11-Nov-15. Waypoint GA7430

The true story of a 'tank' driving through Perth's CBD

In the early hours of Thursday 27th April 1993, an armoured personnel carrier (APC) 'tank' was stolen from Irwin Barracks, driven through Perth's city streets, leaving destruction in its wake, targeted primarily at Police. Details below.

The cache is NOT at posted coordinates, but is within Perth City CBD; a mint tin (magnetic) containing log book and pencil.

It may be found at: S31°57.XYY'  E115°5A.BC7' to be determined by visiting five of the six listed waypoints, which the APC itself visited, as follows...

REFERENCE [S31°57.557' E115°47.512'] Irwin Barracks, Karrakatta  (7km SW of CBD) northern gate where APC broke out.
REFERENCE [S31°56.476' E115°48.471'] Wembley Police Station (6km west of CBD) first target.

1) Visit ONE of either:

• [S31°57.645' E115°52.729'] WA Police HQ, East Perth. Rear entry has height restriction sign; Y = both digits summed; OR
• [S31°57.018' E115°51.813'] City Police CIB, Northbridge. At rear stands a parking meter; Y = double the "CTI-n" digit, top right.

2) Visit [S31°57.516' E115°52.302] intersection of Hay and Bennett Streets, where APC was photographed. Check the pole nearest bin, supporting traffic light directing Hay St;  X = one-digit number minus four.

3) Visit [S31°57.373' E115°51.689'] Bus Stop shelter (St Georges Tce) demolished when TRG officers mounted the vehicle; A = middle digit of bus stop number.

4) Visit [S31°57.339' E115°51.787'] Central Law Courts (501 Hay St), front wall damaged, witnessed from Kings Hotel. The car park has a height restriction sign; B = three digits summed, minus one.

5) Visit [S31°57.155' E115°50.926'] view of State Parliament House, from where APC was filmed by news crew. Lamp post shows four-digit number; C = second digit.

Armoured personnel carrier rampaging Perth streets

In May 1993 [sic, 27 April 1993] WA Police were confronted with a rampaging 11 tonne tracked vehicle driven by Gary Alan Hayes, 31 years, who had stolen the vehicle from an army depot. His first attack was on the Wembley Police Station, located 10km from the city, at 4.40am crashing through a fence, damaging a police vehicle, as well as the building itself. Detectives from this station had been dealing with him over other criminal offences. He had previously been charged over $78,000 worth of counter- terrorist equipment stolen from the SAS barracks in November 1992. Police attended and he then crashed into the rear of their van knocking them into a lamp post. He then travelled into the city, to Police Headquarters and the City Police Station where at 5.15am he smashed through security gates. He then commenced to run over six police vehicles and a motor cycle, as well as private vehicles, parked in the secure area. Crashing his way out and demolishing the exit gates, he then travelled to the Central Law Courts, slamming into the masonry supports to this building. He then travelled to the CIB building in Beaufort Street, Perth and caused further damage, but could not get past the bollards guarding the building. Travelling onto Parliament House, he circled the building and stopped. Police negotiators attempted to talk to him through a slit in the front of the vehicle, but he set off again into the central city.
Police had noticed that a hatch on the vehicle was not totally secure. Three officers climbed onto the vehicle from the rear. The driver became aware and he attempted to dislodge them by driving into a bus shelter, which he demolished in the process. The TRG officers managed to drop a tear-gas grenade into the vehicle through the loose hatch, which also gave them entry, finally arresting the offender who resisted arrest violently at about 6.15am. It was then discovered that the vehicle was not carrying ammunition for its guns. He was charged on 19 counts of Criminal Damage, burglary and Assault of Police Officers.
Constable D. Shaw and Constable A.J. Power received a Commissioner’s Certificate of Merit for their actions resulting in the arrest of this person.

Source: Western Australia Police: "Episodes in WA's Policing History"

What happened to Gary Hayes?

On June 9, 1987, Gary Hayes was questioned by police in suburban Scarborough. He was taken to the nearby Wembley CIB. During a night and day in police custody, Gary was beaten and strangled and whipped across the face with handcuffs. He names five detectives as involved. He was charged for a break-in of a City Beach deli. The window found broken at the kiosk was too small for Gary to have climbed through, and despite blood on a fridge at the kiosk, Gary had no cuts on him. Gary says that shards of glass from the kiosk window were put into his jumper by the police. He was then released on bail.
The doctor he saw at the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital minimised the extent of his injuries. Understandably upset, Gary visited a psychiatrist, who said he was OK. Four days later, early one morning, after collaboration with the psychiatrist, police arrived with a warrant. Gary was taken to Graylands Psychiatric Hospital for a week-long assessment. The psychiatrists told Gary that he was suffering from "paranoid delusions" and that he had not been bashed or framed by the police. Gary was held in Graylands maximum security for a month, during which time he was injected with Chlorpromazine, a drug used for acute schizophrenia.
When Gary went to court later in 1987 on the breaking and entering charge, his lawyer recommended he plead guilty "in order to stay out of prison". Gary was convicted. His subsequent appeal failed. To pay the $6500 fine, he had to sell everything he owned. In early 1988 Gary was sitting in a friend's car when approached by police. One of the officers had also arrested him in June 1987. He was pulled from the car, dragged and "elbowed" in the jaw repeatedly. On August 13, 1991, as he was walking into town, a police car began following him. Gary was questioned before being kneed in the groin. Then he was kicked in the head and back and punched by several police, sustaining a cracked rib, bruising and a severe lump on his head.
Gary began to speak out publicly. He contacted the media, approached parliamentarians, complained to the ombudsman, contacted civil liberties and human rights groups. The treatment he had received made him fear for his life. In order to defend himself from the police, he got a gun. When the police raided his house, he was charged with possession of that firearm and was due to appear in court on April 28, 1993. Gary knew he had to bring wider attention to his plight.
On the night of April 27, he took an 11-tonne armoured personnel carrier from the Irwin Army Barracks in suburban Karrakatta, driving through streets to Wembley CIB, where he used the tank to ram a police car through the wall of the police station he had been bashed in. Pushing a second police van into a light pole, he drove on to city police headquarters, smashing the heavy metal gates and ramming police vehicles. He then drove to the central law courts, smashing the front of building. In court, Gary attempted to speak of the injustices he had endured. He was unable to put his case and was remanded to Casuarina prison, being held in isolation. His bail application was delayed by "lost paperwork".
On August 25, prison doctors and a Graylands psychiatrist authorised a dozen prison guards to forcibly inject him with the neuroleptic drug Fluphenazine. Neuroleptics are the most potent of all psychiatric drugs and can cause permanent brain damage. Fluphenazine acts on the central nervous system, causing loss of control and uncontrollable jerking and shaking. The effects on Gary so far have been memory loss, jaw crunching, muscle spasms, restricted motor movements, dribbling, compliancy, complacency, minimal attention span, speech impairment, excessive drowsiness, incapacity to think clearly or concentrate. Becoming more compliant and complacent is judged by the doctors and the legal system as his condition "improving". It is intended to keep Gary on the medication for 12 months without review. On November 1, a solicitor entered a guilty plea on Gary's behalf. Judge Viol is withholding sentence until December 17. The danger is that the psychiatric report will carry a lot of weight, and that Gary's evidence will not even be heard. This could result in Gary being legally classified as insane for speaking out about police violence.

Source: Green Left Weekly: Issue# 123 (17-Nov-1993)

Hints