Three teens charged after knife fight at Westfield Knox, terrified witnesses describe bloody scene
Three teenage boys have been arrested following a knife fight in Westfield Knox, with witnesses describing blood soaked teens rushing into Coles in search of bandages.
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Three teenage boys are facing a string of charges following a brutal stabbing at a Melbourne shopping centre.
Westfield Knox in Melbourne’s outer eastern suburbs was plunged into chaos after a violent knife fight involving several teenage boys about 5.30pm on Tuesday.
One of those boys sustained serious injuries consistent with a stabbing and was rushed to hospital.
Investigators then had to conduct a “thorough investigation” to track down the alleged offenders — two 17-year-old boys and a 16-year-old boy — who fled the scene after the brawl.
Police then charged two of those boys, aged 16 and 17, with more than 10 offences including robbery, affray, assault, theft of a motor vehicle, attempted aggravated burglary and intentionally causing injury.
The other 17-year-old has been charged with intentionally causing injury, theft of a motor vehicle, affray and assault.
A shopper who was at the centre at the time of the brawl spoke of the moment a teenager collapsed to the floor after he was brutally stabbed.
A privacy screen was then erected at the check-outs of the Coles supermarket as police and paramedics swarmed the area.
“A young male was stabbed outside the library area at Knox. He along with about eight or 10 others made their way down to Coles,” witness Kath said.
“I was at the entrance and heard all the commotion and stopped and I saw the kid was not in a good way and asked if he needed help and they said they needed bandages.
“I told them that he needed an ambulance. They just yelled ‘where do I get bandages?’ and a few of them ran into Coles.”
Kath said a blood-soaked teenager then fell to the floor.
“They were all yelling,” she added.
“All I saw was a stab wound in his arm and him holding his jumper to his stomach and he wasn’t wearing a shirt.
“There was a lot of blood and a couple of others were covered in blood too. They were in Coles going to the medical aisle, when the young male collapsed.
“It was an absolutely horrible thing to witness.”
Another witness, who was locked in a nearby store as the chaos unfolded, said her young daughter was “traumatised” by the knife fight.
“It was awful … I just wanted to get out of there,” Nicole said online.
“My daughter is traumatised by the incident. It’s not OK to feel unsafe like that in a shopping centre.”
An ambulance quickly arrived on scene after other concerned onlookers called emergency service and the boy was transported to The Alfred hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The three boys were remanded to appear before a children’s court on Thursday.
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Originally published as Three teens charged after knife fight at Westfield Knox, terrified witnesses describe bloody scene
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