Three teenagers have been charged with murder after a man who tried to intervene and help a 14-year-old schoolboy died in a “savage” stabbing attack.
Emergency crews were called to Mernda train station in Melbourne’s northeast on Friday afternoon after reports of a fight between teenagers.
A group of bystanders, including a 22-year-old Mernda man, stepped in to intervene after a group of teenagers attacked a 14-year-old boy.
Bystanders attempted to diffuse the situation, and the man grabbed the boy and carried him away from the situation and outside the train station, homicide squad detective Nigel L’Estrange said.
“Unfortunately, those four criminals followed them both and then, in what could only be described as a savage attack, they physically attacked the 22-year-old, with both fists, kicks and used knives,” he told reporters on Saturday.
The victim suffered life-threatening injuries and was treated by paramedics but died at the scene.
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Four male teenagers (one 16-year-old, two 17-year-olds and one 18-year-old) were arrested.
The 16-year-old, from Whittlesea, the 17-year-old, from Geelong, and the 18-year-old, from Mill Park, were charged with murder and armed robbery.
The older suspect will appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday.
A 17-year-old from Yarra City is under police guard in hospital and has not yet been interviewed.
“This is just a tragic situation where our victim here is just a good Samaritan who was trying to do the right thing,” Det Insp L’Estrange said.
“He intervened, he tried to protect this 14-year-old boy, he was not aggressive at all, he tried to remove him from the scene, and as a result of their interaction, he has now lost his life.”
Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Mary-Anne Thomas said her thoughts were with the victim’s family and called the horrific incident truly worrying.
He referred to the government’s tougher youth crime laws, which came into effect just over a week ago and could result in youth offenders receiving harsher punishments for serious crimes.
“Young people who commit violent crimes are about to find out that they will serve time as adults,” Thomas told reporters Saturday.
Opposition police spokesman Brad Battin said the incident highlighted Labour’s failure to tackle youth crime and remove machetes from the streets.
“With almost 2,000 vacancies on police rolls, more than 40 stations closed or operating on reduced hours and PSOs to be removed from 120 train stations, Victorians continue to pay the price for Labour’s community safety failures,” he said in a statement.
