The driver who hit Australian MP Helen Haines "turned around" to hit her twice against her own vehicle

The driver of the vehicle that hit independent Australian MP Helen Haines turned around to return to the place where the parliamentarian was and hit her, according to the first testimonies, in an incident that the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, described as a "deliberate act."

Haines, 65, remains in critical condition at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, where she was taken by helicopter after suffering serious injuries in the accident, which occurred this Monday in front of her electoral office in Wangaratta, in the northeast of the state of Victoria (south).

The Minister of the Interior, Tony Burke, explained this Tuesday that several witnesses saw how the driver of a white Toyota Land Cruiser SUV turned around and rammed Haines into his own vehicle, then reversed and ran her over a second time.

The deputy was next to the trunk of her car when she was hit. A passerby intervened to remove the driver from the vehicle and hold him until the police arrived.

Victoria Police confirmed the arrest of a 43-year-old man living in Tarrawingee, a town near Wangaratta, who remains in custody and will be questioned this Tuesday morning.

Officers found a knife in the vehicle, which was seized. According to initial information, the suspect was known to the Police and is scheduled to undergo a mental health evaluation.

Albanese stated that the first indications point to a deliberate action, although authorities have urged caution as they investigate the circumstances of the event and the suspect's motive.

The investigation involves Victoria Police, the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO), through a joint counter-terrorism task force.

Investigators are trying to determine if the attack was intentional, if the detainee previously knew the deputy and what motivations could have led him to act. At the moment, the motive for the event has not been confirmed or whether Haines was attacked because of her status as a political representative.