"Help me": Bunnings thief dies after security guard's headlock hold
<p>After stealing a gas cylinder and saw blade from a Melbourne Bunnings store, Anthony Georgiou was placed in a headlock hold by security contractors. </p>
<p>The security team tried to stop him from fleeing the Frankston store, while a witness heard Georgiou scream, "Help me, help me, let me go," as he was wrangled to the ground. </p>
<p>the store’s sub-contracted loss prevention officers (LPOs) continued to restrain the 31-year-old, despite his clear distress, until he fell unconscious. </p>
<p>Georgiou was taken to hospital where he died later that day. </p>
<p>A Victorian coroner has found Georgiou’s death in September 2016 would not have occurred if he was not restrained by the contractors at Bunnings.</p>
<p>“There seems little doubt that had Georgiou not been involved in the struggle ... he would have walked away from Bunnings that day,” coroner Darren Bracken said in his findings, which were released earlier this week. </p>
<p>Forensic pathologist Heinrich Bouwer, who conducted Georgiou’s autopsy, found his death was caused by complications with methylamphetamine use in a setting of physical restraint.</p>
<p>He told an inquest being put in a headlock at Bunnings had caused injuries that inhibited Georgiou’s breathing.</p>
<p>The security officers told the inquest they initially tried to get Georgiou to take the stolen property back to the store, but he became aggressive and said “no f*** off” and walked away from them.</p>
<p>One of the officers said he grabbed Georgiou, near the exit, told him he was under arrest and said “let’s make it easy and come back with us”, but he was ignored, and the physical altercation began. </p>
<p>The coroner also found that the security guards in question had not attended the mandatory training on how to deal with thieves, nor been given a copy of the Bunnings' code of conduct.</p>
<p><em>Image credits: Getty Images / A Current Affair</em></p>
