Audi A4 smashes into Vaughan Mills mall, drives through empty halls in shocking smash and grab

York Regional Police (YRP) are seeking help identifying the suspects in a daring punch and grab that took place in Vaughan earlier this week.

Footage released shows a 2011 black Audi A4 crashing through the entrance of Vaughan Mills shopping center early Wednesday morning. Video from inside the mall captured the vehicle driving through the mall’s empty aisles at around 1:10 a.m. The car then crashed through another set of doors from inside the mall. Police say the suspects took a batch of electronic equipment from an electronics store.

Officials told reporters that no one was injured during the break and entered, but called the incident “a daring crime and noteworthy.”

Investigators determine how many products were stolen from the mall.

“Whether it’s ridiculous or just plain brazen, it’s also unacceptable,” York Regional Police spokesman Sgt. Clint Whitney told reporters. “People work in this mall. There will be cleaners. There will be security guards. We’re just lucky no one was hurt, it’s just property damage. Still, it’s a significant property damage and it’s a loss of property. And we take it seriously.”

The vehicle had a Quebec license plate and a sticker on the front window that read “Ladies on Wheels”. It was seized by police on Wednesday afternoon, although the suspects are still at large. Police were unable to provide a description of the couple as both were wearing hoods. Charges could include dangerous driving, burglary and trespassing, property damage and possession of stolen property.

The car’s owner, Taylor-Anna Kobinger of Laval, Quebec, said CTV News that a man came for a test drive in late January after she placed an ad on Facebook Marketplace. He took the car out for a test drive twice. Nothing seemed suspicious the first time. When he asked to be allowed to drive it again, he began to drive irregularly.

The story goes on

“He drove really dangerously and I didn’t feel safe, so I did [asked] to change places,” Kobinger told the news agency.

When Kobinger got out of the passenger seat, the man sped away.

“I tried to follow. I fell. I slipped because I had rain boots,” she said. “And from that moment on, I never saw my car again.”

YRP contacted Kobinger to let her know that a car with her license plates was used in the Vaughn incident, but was unable to confirm ownership.

Anyone with information about the suspects is asked to contact the police.