Knife-wielding carjacker left victim 'covered in blood' at Westfield Belconnen

A woman was left “covered in blood” when a knife-wielding robber stabbed her outside Westfield Belconnen and stole her car before he embarked on a dangerous police chase through Canberra.

The woman had just opened the door of her Mazda BT50, which was in the mall’s carpark off Benjamin Way, around midday on 24 September 2023, when she heard the sound of footsteps running up behind her, court documents say.

She turned to find Trong Anthony Nguyen behind her, holding a knife with a 10-cm blade and demanding her car keys before he lunged forward, slashing her with the weapon and knocking her to the ground. He grabbed her keys and then drove off in her vehicle.

The woman saw her arm had been sliced with the knife and went into the mall to seek help.

Police officers spotted the Mazda shortly afterwards and gave chase, during which Nguyen drove onto the wrong side of the road and footpath as well as through red traffic lights on numerous occasions in Ainslie, Civic, Turner and Braddon. He also reached speeds of 150 km/h in a 50 km/h zone.

The chase ended when he crashed into a garden bed and fence. Police caught him after he tried to flee on foot.

He told police he had used heroin that day.

Nguyen, now aged 27, pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated robbery, furious driving and driving while disqualified before his sentencing proceedings began in the ACT Supreme Court on Wednesday (21 August).

“I don’t believe anyone can begin to know the feeling of fear until they are faced with the thought that their life is about to end,” his victim told the court.

“The moment I saw the knife, that’s what I felt.”

The music teacher said she had been unable to play any instruments since she was stabbed due to the physical injury she received, and she hadn’t been able to return to work since the “cowardly attack”.

“Taking drugs is a choice. Stabbing someone is a choice. Stealing a car is a choice. Living with PTSD is not a choice; it’s a nightmare that doesn’t end,” she said.

“Is the hit of heroin really worth ruining a person’s life?”

Her husband said he had arrived at the scene to find her “covered in blood”.

“I couldn’t process her being stabbed while shopping,” he said.

“The actions of the offender have totally destroyed my family, my wife’s well-being and her outlook on life.

“She was lucky that he only got her arm and she wasn’t stabbed to death.”

Special Justice Rebecca Christensen SC said Nguyen would be referred for a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order eligibility assessment to take place in September before the sentencing proceedings continued in court.

Nguyen, who was refused bail after his arrest, has been remanded in custody.