Canberra: Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios helped police catch a man who allegedly stole his Tesla at gunpoint from a home in Australia’s capital city, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported on Tuesday.
The ABC said court documents showed the 2022 Wimbledon finalist used the Tesla app to track and slow down the vehicle as police pursued it on Monday morning in Canberra.
The ABC said documents from court proceedings on Tuesday allege a man pointed a gun at Kyrgios’ mother, Norlaila Kyrgios, demanded the keys for the car and asked her how to drive it. When he got into the car, she fled and screamed for help. Kyrgios, who was nearby, telephoned a police emergency number and helped them track the vehicle.
Tactical response team
The police pursuit ended when the car entered a school zone, but a man was arrested soon after with help from a police tactical response team. The statement said police formed a cordon to intercept the man. He was arrested in Canberra and the vehicle was recovered about 9:05am on Monday, about half an hour after the alleged offence began.
A 32-year-old man was denied bail on Tuesday after appearing in the Australian Capital Territory Magistrates Court on five charges relating to the incident, including aggravated robbery, driving a stolen vehicle, furious driving and failing to stop for police.
Kyrgios reached the final at Wimbledon and the US Open quarterfinals last year but hasn’t played a competitive match at the elite level since withdrawing from a tournament in Japan last October because of left knee injury. The 28-year-old Australian has a career-high ranking of No 13.
