A Good Samaritan was assaulted and carjacked after stopping to help the occupants of a vehicle used in a Papanui liquor store ram raid.

A Thirsty Liquor store on Papanui Road was ram raided at about 2.10am on Monday.

Witness Isaac Boyce told chrislynchmedia.com he was driving along Papanui Road when he saw a silver Toyota Prius sitting in the middle of the road.

Seconds later the driver accelerated backwards into the liquor store, he said.

“As I got closer and realised what happened, they must have seen me because the two people I saw quickly jumped in the car and floored it off,” Boyce said.

He followed the Prius as far as the Cranford Street intersection while speaking to police.

A police spokesperson told chrislynchmedia.com the vehicle used in the burglary crashed into a ditch on Queen Elizabeth II Drive a short time later.

A member of the public stopped to check on the occupants and was assaulted, and their vehicle was taken, the police spokesperson said.

Police have since recovered both vehicles. Enquiries are continuing and no arrests have been made.