A teenager has been found guilty of murdering 16-year-old Oscar Hamilton, who was stabbed three times during an attack outside Woodgrove Shopping Centre in Melton, west of Melbourne.
The killing took place shortly before noon on September 24, 2024, when Oscar was sitting with his girlfriend and two friends in an outdoor dining area. His mother, Tracy, had dropped him off at the centre earlier that morning.
The offender, who was 15 at the time and cannot be named for legal reasons, approached the group before grabbing Oscar by the collar and producing a knife. He stabbed the teenager repeatedly in the chest, with the third wound piercing his heart.
Oscar briefly returned to his chair after the attack and told his friends to call an ambulance before collapsing. Despite attempts by bystanders and paramedics to save him, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A jury at the Supreme Court of Victoria reached its verdict in less than an hour after being shown CCTV footage of the killing from several angles inside the busy shopping centre.
Members of Oscar’s family were in tears as the recordings were played during the trial. The footage showed the attacker struggling to withdraw the knife before fleeing. The weapon has never been recovered.
The motive behind the Oscar Hamilton murder
Prosecutors said the attack was driven by the accused’s anger over an allegation made by a 14-year-old girl, who had told him she wanted to remain friends. She later alleged in a text message that Oscar had sexually assaulted her.
The allegation was not tested at the trial, and prosecutor Erin Ramsay told jurors it was not their role to decide whether it was true. She said it had been presented only as evidence of the alleged motive for the attack.
“This appears to be the motive for the stabbing,” Ms Ramsay said. “Now, you’re not here to decide whether there’s any truth to what (she) alleges Oscar had done.”
The court heard the accused had contacted the girl on Snapchat shortly before Oscar was killed, asking whether her claim was true. Oscar insisted he had done nothing wrong before the confrontation turned violent.
Oscar’s girlfriend, who was 16 at the time, told the court that he had spoken to the accused for about 20 seconds. She said the exchange appeared normal and was not accompanied by shouting.
The accused then returned to the table and said words to the effect of, “Oh, I was talking to you”, before moving towards Oscar and seizing the front of his jumper.
Oscar replied: “Oi, get the f*** off me.” The teenager was then stabbed three times.
After running from the shopping centre, the accused telephoned the girl and apologised repeatedly, saying he believed he had killed Oscar. He was arrested several hours later at a friend’s house.
Teenager had pleaded guilty to manslaughter
The accused had sought to have the murder charge reduced to manslaughter and entered a guilty plea to that offence at the start of the trial.
Victoria’s Director of Public Prosecutions, Brendan Kissane KC, rejected the plea and proceeded with the murder case. The defence argued that the central issue was whether the teenager had intended to kill Oscar or cause him serious injury, pointing out that he was 15 when the stabbing occurred.
Detective Leading Senior Constable Stephen Eppingstall, who was also involved in the investigation that led to mushroom murderer Erin Patterson being convicted, helped bring the teenager before the court.
Oscar’s death prompted tributes from friends and relatives, as well as a campaign against knife violence. His friends wore black hoodies bearing the messages “Long Live Oscar”, “Justice For Oscar” and “Stop The Violence”, alongside a photograph of him.
The killer will be sentenced at a date yet to be fixed.
