An 18-year-old woman has been stabbed six times during a group attack at a park in Deer Park, west Melbourne, after an apparent online dispute.
The teenager and a 20-year-old woman were confronted by up to 10 youths at Robert Bruce Reserve at about 7.15pm on Wednesday. The older woman was not taken to hospital.
Footage of the incident shows the teenager being knocked to the ground and kicked and beaten before one of the attackers allegedly produced a large knife.
Police found her with serious injuries and she was taken to hospital, where she remains in a stable condition. The attackers left before officers arrived and no arrests have been made.
Detective Acting Sergeant Ali Samie said the teenager was “lucky” to be alive.
“It only takes one millimetre and, we’re talking about a homicide,” he said. “So we’re very lucky in this case we’re not having that conversation.”
He said the victim had been kicked and stomped on before being stabbed repeatedly, describing it as difficult to watch, particularly as she was attacked while on all fours.
“The victim is in hospital recovering, receiving treatment, and speaking with us but it very easily could have been a lot more serious,” Detective Samie said.
Police believe the group had arranged to meet at the reserve following an online dispute. Two knives, an empty knife packet and a hair extension were recovered from the scene and will undergo forensic examination.
The stabbing took place a day after Victoria Labor announced plans to give police greater powers to search people for knives if it is re-elected at the November election.
The proposed powers, known as Jack’s Law, are already supported by the Liberals. The law is named after Jack Beasley, a teenager who was killed in a 2019 attack on the Gold Coast.
Victoria Premier Ben Carroll condemned the assault and said police would be given the resources needed to tackle knife crime.
“[It’s] shocking,” he said. “It’s why I’ve said we need a zero tolerance approach, and we will give the police every resource they need. And that just goes to show you why Jack’s Law is so important.
“I will give police the power and resources they need to stop knife crime.”
