PERTH (The Straits Times/ANN): An investigation is under way in Western Australia after police shot dead a teenager who reportedly stabbed a member of the public.
The community of Willetton in Perth’s south was shaken after reports surfaced on local news platforms. The incident reportedly took place along High Street before 11.30pm local time on May 4.
According to reports from WAMN News on May 5, a police operation was mobilised. Witnesses described a chaotic scene where a man wielding a long knife chased individuals on the street.
News.com.au reported that the 16-year-old suspect is a Caucasian armed with what is believed to be a 30cm-long kitchen knife. He called the police to the carpark outside Bunnings Willeton on May 4 around 10pm after stabbing a man in the back, the police said. Authorities said the victim, who was stabbed in the back, was in the hospital and in stable condition.
Police Commissioner Col Blanch said the officers instructed him to put the knife down. When he refused to do so and lunged at them with his weapon, two officers tasered him while a third shot him.
Images from police body camera showed the teenager refused officers’ demands that he put down the knife, the police chief said.
The teenager died in hospital later in the night, he said.
Commissioner Blanch said the boy, who had “mental health issues”, was known to the police. He also appeared to be a part of a programme about “online radicalisation”.
Earlier, Western Australia Premier Roger Cook had said: “There are indications he had been radicalised online.”
“But I want to reassure the community at this stage it appears that he acted solely and alone,” he added.
“Members of the WA Muslim community, who were concerned by his behaviour, contacted police prior to the incident and I thank them for their help. Our police responded within minutes.”
At about 10pm on May 4, the police received a call from a male who said he was going to commit “acts of violence”, ABC News reported.
In a press conference on May 5, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese thanked the Western Australian police for their swift action to contain the incident and said his “thoughts are with those who have been affected by the incident”.
He said: “We are a peace-loving nation and there is no place for violent extremism in Australia.”
A family member of a witness, who was not named, recounted the harrowing experience to WAMN News. Her brother-in-law was chased by a man with a long knife, she said.
“After working out, he waited at the door for his friends, and then a man approached him with a knife,” she added. The attacker reportedly shouted religious phrases before pursuing her brother-in-law, who managed to escape. The assailant then turned his attention to another group of people, attacking one of them.
The Perth attack comes weeks after a stabbing spree in a Sydney mall on April 13 which left six people dead and a knife attack in a church two days later which left at least four people, including a bishop, wounded.
The suspect in the mall attack was shot and killed by a lone female police officer, who happened to be nearby.
A 16-year-old boy was charged with a terrorism offence for the knifing of Assyrian Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a live-streamed church service on April 15. An Australian counter-terrorism team arrested seven teenagers on April 24 who were linked to him. - The Straits Times/ANN
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
