Teenagers arrested over stabbing attack in Melbourne
Sydney, Feb 25 (IANS/GURPUNEET SIDHU):- Three males have been hospitalised and four teenagers arrested following a stabbing attack in Melbourne’s northern suburbs.
Police said on Tuesday that officers were called to reports of a fight and stabbing at a retail store car park in the suburb of Broadmeadows — 15 km north of central Melbourne — at about 7:30 pm local time on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.
Officers attending the scene found two men — aged 40 and 18 — with suspected stab wounds. They were both taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Witnesses told the police that a group of teenagers were seen running from the scene.
The police air wing was deployed to the area and spotted the group entering an address.
Detectives and members of the critical incident response team moved in on the property and arrested three 19-year-olds and an 18-year-old — all males.
A fifth member of the group, aged 14, was also injured during the fight and was hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries. The police said they expected to interview him in relation to the incident.
The police said in a statement that the fight broke out when the 40-year-old and 18-year-old attended the car park looking for a pair of headphones that had been stolen at a nearby shopping center earlier in the evening.
One of the 19-year-old assailants has been charged with causing serious injury with intention in circumstances of gross violence, affray and robbery. The first of the three charges carries a maximum sentence of 20 years of imprisonment.
The 18-year-old was charged with intentionally and recklessly causing injury and affray and the other two 19-year-olds with affray and with recklessly causing injury, affray, assault by kicking and robbery.
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