Source : the age
Two people have been arrested and another has been hospitalised after a machete brawl involving about 10 people broke out at a shopping centre in Melbourne’s north on Sunday afternoon.
Northland Shopping Centre in Preston went into lockdown after knife-wielding men were seen fighting, as people hid inside stores and police swarmed the scene.
One of the two arrested is a 15-year-old boy, and eight other people involved are currently in the process of being identified, police said at a press conference later on Sunday.
Superintendent Kelly Lawson said one machete had been located at the scene. There were no firearms involved despite some reports, she said.
“It’s really frightening for members of the public to go through this,” Lawson said.
Police said they were called to the shopping centre just after 2.30pm following reports of about 10 people from opposing groups fighting, some armed with knives.
A photo taken by witnesses at Northland Shopping Centre shows a person wielding a knife lunging at two other people.
“One male was transported to hospital in a serious but stable condition. Police arrested two males who are currently being interviewed,” they said.
“The centre was locked down as the incident took place and remains closed while police investigate.
“The exact circumstances surrounding the incident are being investigated but it is believed the incident was targeted and parties are believed to be known to each other.”
An Ambulance Victoria spokesperson said one man in his 20s was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition with upper body injuries.
They said paramedics were called to the scene at 2.35pm after reports of a brawl at the shopping centre. The spokesperson said at least two others were assessed by paramedics, but were not transported to hospital.
Videos and images on social media show a man wielding a large knife lunging at two other men running towards him. Other posts show police wrestling a man to the ground and people hiding in stores.
Workers near the centre’s food court said two groups of people were fighting and two of them appeared to be holding large knives.
A photo taken by a witness at Northland shows a police officer wrestling a person to the ground.Credit: Facebook
Staff further away heard screaming and saw patrons running for the exits after the fighting began.
“People were run into and screaming and we had to close our doors to protect our customers and ourselves,” a witness, Rodney, told this masthead.
“Everyone was locking customers in to be safe. Then police came through and said ‘get behind us and we will take you out of the centre’.”
Police apprehend someone at Northland following a brawl.Credit: Facebook
He said it was the worst violence he had seen in almost eight years working at the centre.
One woman, who did not want to be identified for privacy reasons, was trapped inside Woolworths when the incident unfolded.
“I could see people running past and then saw some of the other shopfronts closing,” she said of the scene that greeted her about 3pm. “Then we heard people saying, ‘people are being stabbed with machetes’.”
She then witnessed police streaming into the shopping centre. The woman said staff initially gave shoppers an opportunity to leave the supermarket, but then closed their doors and offered frightened customers bottles of water.
“I kept shopping because I didn’t know how else to keep calm,” she said.
Police wrestle a man to the ground at Northland Shopping Centre on Sunday.Credit: Facebook
About 3.30pm, Woolworths staff advised customers to leave their trolleys full of groceries at the entrance of the supermarket and to follow police instructions. The doors were opened and shoppers were ordered to the Northland car park.
“Everyone who was in the mall was being ushered in the carpark,” she said. “Some people got in their car and started driving but most people stood around waiting to see what was happening. There were police at the exit of the car park and ambulances and helicopters.”
Shoppers and retail staff continued to mill outside the centre at 4.30pm, however, a shopping centre official was seen telling people that they were unlikely to be able to re-enter today.
Northland Shopping Centre management has been contacted for comment.
Preston MP Nathan Lambert said on social media the events at Northland sounded terrifying, adding that he had contacted Northland management and would provide an update when possible.
Liberal MP for the Northern Metropolitan Region Evan Mulholland said on Instagram that people should avoid the area.
Northland Shopping Centre on Sunday.Credit: Wayne Taylor
“Our shopping centres should be a safe place for families. Northland in particular is a destination for many families in the north, I was there with my own family yesterday,” he said.
He called for the state government to enact the machete ban immediately.
Premier Jacinta Allan has been under pressure to act on soaring rates of knife crime and youth offending in Victoria, prompting the introduction of a ban on machetes, set to commence on September 1.
The state government trumpeted passing Australia’s “toughest bail laws” in March and, in the recent budget, revealed new investment in prison capacity. The government has also backed down on a plan to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 14, instead legislating the age at 12.
In April 2024, Joel Cauchi, 40, stabbed and killed six shoppers with a military knife at Bondi Junction Westfields before he was shot dead by police. The mass killing prompted calls for improved safety measures at shopping centres.
A NSW coronial inquest into the Bondi attack is currently underway.
