Police appeal for information after footage of hoons in Bendigo taunting police

A car full of brazen bums was filmed taunting police officers with burns and donuts on a busy street in Bendigo on Saturday morning.

Victoria Police were participating in a separate, unrelated incident on McCrae Street at around 1:20 a.m. when a gold-colored Ford Falcon pulled out of a side street and began performing what officials described as “hoon behavior”.

In the video, a passenger in a Ford Falcon appears to be flying a Mexican flag through the window, a possible reference to a popular social media account dedicated to dangerous driving known as the Mexican Hoon Cartel.

Acting Superintendent Troy Hargadon said the rogue occupants of the vehicle had put at risk not only their own lives, but also those of members of the police and the wider community.

“We saw some minor damage done to the police vehicle, which could easily have been a member of the public,” said Acting Superintendent Hargadon.

He confirmed that the Ford Falcon had collided with the stopped police vehicle.

Acting Superintendent Hargadon said police did not pursue dangerous drivers because of the risk posed by large crowds of bystanders nearby.

“We saw people from the behaviors and actions of these people at the time, pursuing them would no doubt be irresponsible and create more risk for the community at large,” he said.

Police identified three men in their mid-20s in the video and expect search warrants to be executed today to locate the three persons of interest.

Authorities do not rule out that the event may have been planned and said the police may have had contact with the car’s occupants on previous occasions.

Anyone with information about the vehicle or occupants should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online.