Victoria Police offer scant details on frightening machete attack at Melbourne shopping centre after man's arm slashed
The incident unfolded around 8pm on Saturday when a 33-year-old man was approached by a group of men at Central Square Shopping Centre in Altona Meadows.
Police said investigators have been told the victim was pushed to the ground before one of the alleged offenders pulled out an "edged weapon" and struck the man's forearm.
The group then fled the scene with the man's phone, while the victim was taken to hospital for serious injuries. Police believe the parties are not known to each other.
Victoria Police did not release a public statement about the incident, but informed SkyNews.com.au of the details when contacted directly.
No information was released that may assist the public in helping identify the alleged perpetrators.
While there were no reports on Victoria Police's website or social media platforms at time of publication, a post was shared on Facebook earlier on Monday morning about wet weather, reminding motorists to be vigilant on the roads while driving.
Police said investigations into the shopping centre attack are ongoing.
The Herald Sun reports the 33-year-old man almost lost part of his hand after he was slashed by the machete.
Victoria Ambulance said the man was treated at the scene for "upper body injuries" before he was taken in a serious but stable condition to Royal Melbourne Hospital.
In a separate incident on Sunday night, a teenage boy was rushed to hospital with critical injuries after he was stabbed at Broadmeadows Central shopping centre in Melbourne's north.
Speaking to media on Monday, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan defended the state's machetes crackdown after she was asked if the ban should be implemented sooner in the wake of the attacks.
"We've already got a ban in place here in Victoria on the sale of machetes," Ms Allan said.
The Premier confirmed earlier this year that Victoria would bring forward its ban on machetes, which will officially come into effect on September 1.
An interim ban was put in place on the sale of machetes in May following a wild brawl between rival gangs at Northland Shopping Centre in Melbourne's north.
Ms Allan said the machete sales ban has already had a "great effect" regarding physical retailers while online outlets have taken machetes out of circulation.
"The statewide ban, Australia's first ban on machetes, comes into place on September 1 and that timeline is being worked on with Victorian police as the quickest and safest way to get rid of these dangerous weapons," Ms Allan said on Monday.
"It took the United Kingdom 18 months to bring about a ban on machetes in their nation, we're doing it in less than six, and it comes into place on September 1."
Asked if she was comfortable with the official ban still being months away, Ms Allan backed in the timeline being worked on with Victoria Police.
"The start of September was identified as the safest and quickest way, based on the advice of Victorian Police, to get those dangerous weapons off our streets," she said.
"But we've acted earlier than that in bringing about the ban on the sale of machetes, which has already been in place and it is already working."
Ms Allan labelled the incidents in Altona Meadows on the weekend as "just horrific", adding her thoughts are with the man and his family as he recovers.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
5 hours ago
- ABC News
Lachlan Young appears in court after pleading guilty to murder of Hannah McGuire
The man who has pleaded guilty to killing Clunes woman Hannah McGuire will return to a Victorian court in October for a three-day hearing that will help to determine his sentence. Lachlan Young, 23, pleaded not guilty to the murder of his 23-year-old ex-partner, but changed his plea eight days into his Supreme Court trial. Ms McGuire's body was found in a burnt-out car at Scarsdale, near Ballarat, in April last year. Young appeared in the Supreme Court via video-link from the Metropolitan Remand Centre this morning and a three-day plea hearing was scheduled to start on October 27. The court heard there could be "one or two small issues in regards to the facts" of the case, which the prosecution and defence would make submissions on during the plea hearing. The prosecution also flagged there would be "a large number of victim impact statements" to be be tendered as part of the October plea hearing. A plea hearing sets out all relevant information so a justice or judge can determine an appropriate sentence for the defendant. Ms McGuire's friends and family cheered, hugged and cried in court after Young changed his plea to guilty last Friday. Her parents, who run the National Hotel in Clunes, will hold a two-hour gathering at the pub tonight as a way to extend their "heartfelt gratitude to our wonderful community who has supported us through our darkest days and continues to do so".
Sydney Morning Herald
6 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
The big money behind childcare operator at the heart of alleged sex abuse scandal
The childcare operator at the centre of the sector's alleged sexual abuse scandal, Affinity Education, lost money last year as it continued with an acquisition binge designed to give its rich-lister backers a lucrative exit. The for-profit childcare sector at large has come under intensifying pressure following allegations that Joshua Dale Brown had allegedly sexually abused children at several Victorian centres, but the Quadrant Private Equity-owned Affinity has also been dogged by other alleged incidents. Brown's case is still being investigated and remains before the courts. Queensland Police charged a 21-year-old male employee of an Affinity centre in Brisbane on July 10 over an offence alleging indecent treatment of a child. That came as the list of centres that Brown worked at continued to balloon, including additional centres owned by Affinity. Scrutiny of Affinity has been limited compared with the ASX-listed G8 Education – which has had hundreds of millions of dollars wiped from its market capitalisation after the charges against Brown were made public – despite Affinity owning 13 of the 23 centres where Brown worked. But financial statements lodged with the corporate regulator by the Brisbane-headquartered Affinity portray a company on an expansion binge since Quadrant bought it in 2021. Financial statements lodged with ASIC show that in the 2024 calendar year, Affinity posted an after-tax loss of more than $20 million, with huge debt bills playing a significant role, despite underinvestment in staff compared with the rest of the industry. Affinity's accounts for the financial year ending December 31, 2024, show it was saddled with $614 million worth of loans, just shy of the $650 million that Quadrant paid for Affinity in 2021 when the company borrowings totalled $325 million.
The Age
6 hours ago
- The Age
The big money behind childcare operator at the heart of alleged sex abuse scandal
The childcare operator at the centre of the sector's alleged sexual abuse scandal, Affinity Education, lost money last year as it continued with an acquisition binge designed to give its rich-lister backers a lucrative exit. The for-profit childcare sector at large has come under intensifying pressure following allegations that Joshua Dale Brown had allegedly sexually abused children at several Victorian centres, but the Quadrant Private Equity-owned Affinity has also been dogged by other alleged incidents. Brown's case is still being investigated and remains before the courts. Queensland Police charged a 21-year-old male employee of an Affinity centre in Brisbane on July 10 over an offence alleging indecent treatment of a child. That came as the list of centres that Brown worked at continued to balloon, including additional centres owned by Affinity. Scrutiny of Affinity has been limited compared with the ASX-listed G8 Education – which has had hundreds of millions of dollars wiped from its market capitalisation after the charges against Brown were made public – despite Affinity owning 13 of the 23 centres where Brown worked. But financial statements lodged with the corporate regulator by the Brisbane-headquartered Affinity portray a company on an expansion binge since Quadrant bought it in 2021. Financial statements lodged with ASIC show that in the 2024 calendar year, Affinity posted an after-tax loss of more than $20 million, with huge debt bills playing a significant role, despite underinvestment in staff compared with the rest of the industry. Affinity's accounts for the financial year ending December 31, 2024, show it was saddled with $614 million worth of loans, just shy of the $650 million that Quadrant paid for Affinity in 2021 when the company borrowings totalled $325 million.
