A man from Victoria has been denied bail following an alleged daytime car theft incident involving a passenger in his 90s outside a Shepparton hospital in the northern region of the state.

According to law enforcement authorities, a 93-year-old resident of Tongala was seated in the passenger side of a vehicle parked outside Goulburn Valley Health on Graham Street around 4:30 PM on Friday. At that moment, a 23-year-old individual from Shepparton reportedly entered the driver’s seat and drove away.

Reports indicate that the female driver had exited the vehicle briefly to run an errand nearby.

The police located the stolen vehicle approximately 90 minutes later on Ford Road, with the elderly passenger still inside and unharmed.

Officers also discovered the 23-year-old suspect in the vicinity after he allegedly broke into an office building.

Detectives from the Shepparton Crime Investigation Unit apprehended the man and charged him with offenses including false imprisonment, vehicle theft, and burglary.

The accused has been remanded in custody and is set to appear at the Shepparton Magistrates’ Court on August 21.