On Saturday night at 8:20pm a Glen Innes woman was travelling home with her daughter when her car was hit by a melon-sized rock.

The woman’s husband said the incident marks the third time the family has had a car damaged by vandals.

“The part that’s disturbing is the size of the rock,” he said.

“Going by the size of the rock I find it hard to believe this was a child.

“The potential is there for someone to get killed.”

The two women were on their way home from Armidale Hospital, where the daughter had just had a surgery.

The rock flew out from bushes on the eastern side of the road and hit the drivers side door below the window.

The wife reported seeing a dim light as the offenders escaped through the scrub.

The husband estimates the damage at around $1200.

“These are just absolute grubs, if it was kids, where are the parents?” he said.

“These are people who know the roads and they have an escape route.

“This needs to be brought to light, if the cops can’t catch them, what can they do?”

New England Area Command Inspector Roger Best said there have been multiple reports of instances where rocks have been thrown at moving vehicles in the Armidale area.

“The most disturbing thing is that this took place on a highway where vehicle speeds could have seen people seriously injured or killed, it’s extremely dangerous,” he said.

“History tells us that these events can easily lead to the death of a driver.”

Inspector Best said in most reports a number of youth have been sighted running from the scene.

“People have been killed, we’ve got bridges named after truck drivers that have been killed after having rocks thrown at their windows,” he said.

Police are appealing for anyone with further information to come forward or contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.