Tourist assaulted by ‘person on drugs’ on violent night in St Kilda

The eerie, almost deserted strip of shops in one of Melbourne’s most affluent suburbs has claimed another victim.

A business owner has described the moment four tourists were set upon by a drug-affected man in one of Melbourne’s most affluent suburbs.

On Monday just after 7.30pm, outside one of his venues in Fitzroy Street, Marc Allister watched as a man lunged at the group before he jumped in the air and punched an unsuspecting 21-year-old Dutch man in the jaw.

The victim, who spoke exclusively to news.com.au, said he thinks his jaw was disclocated in the terrifying assault.

“We were walking with four people from a hostel around the corner to get a slushie at 7Eleven when we saw a person on drugs running towards us,” he said.

A tourist from the Netherlands has a suspected dislocated jaw after being punched in the face while walking down a St Kilda street.

The victim of a machete attack in St Kilda in January.

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“We weren’t thinking much of it, but he changed direction when he came closer and hit me right on the jaw without saying a word.

“My jaw might be dislocated, it really hurts on the other side of my face.”

In a frightening turn of events, a second incident was unfolding on the same street within a five-minute window.

Police have told news.com.au that “two men were punched to the face by another man as they walked along Fitzroy Street about 7.30pm” and “there was then an altercation between the group that resulted in the alleged offender being assaulted and allegedly stabbed”.

A 32-year-old man from St Kilda was arrested and interviewed in relation to the alleged stabbing, police said, and they plan to interview a 29-year-old man from Bellfield in relation to the initial assault.

The incidents occurred on the same day that news.com.au published disturbing first person accounts about crime in the area — a once-thriving destination described as “like third world” and compared to Compton, Los Angeles. It has also been described as Melbourne’s crime “epicentre”.

On January 12, a teenage boy attacked a man in St Kilda with a machete, leaving a 10cm-long wound in his head.

The 15-year-old pleaded guilty in a children’s court and remains behind bars after he was deemed a danger to the community.

In a separate incident, also in January, a 79-year-old man was left bleeding from the head after being struck with a bottle on a tram in St Kilda.

Crime in Melbourne’s bayside suburbs is a major concern for residents and business owners.

And on January 4 last year, a couple were attacked while walking along Dandenong Road in St Kilda East. Hours later, a British tourist was left in a critical condition after being stabbed in Acland St, St Kilda.

News.com.au spoke to a number of residents and business owners who are desperate for a solution to crime, drug use and anti-social behaviour in the Port Phillip municipality.

But in response to their concerns, police say “overall crime in St Kilda is at its lowest since 2018”.

“Local police are committed to further reducing offending, particularly in busy areas such as in Acland, Carlisle, and Fitzroy streets,” a police spokesperson said.

“Local police have been running consistent operations targeting drugs and other crimes such as assaults and robberies on these streets for several years.

“This concentrated approach is working — overall crime on Acland, Carlisle and Fitzroy streets has decreased by 33 per cent from a decade ago.”

According to the Crime Statistics Agency, there were 931 assaults in 2024, the second most for a calendar year in the last decade.

There were also 219 sexual offences recorded in 2024, a number just below the 10-year high of 232 recording in 2022.

Mr Allister, who runs Buba Local Shuk on Fitzroy Street, says it’s never been worse.

“I’ve had my car broken into, my bike stolen, junkies taking food from customers’ plates and smashing mine and other customers’ phones on the footpath,” he said.

“That’s just in the last couple of months. I’m waking up at 4am daily to look at the cameras expecting the place to be fire bombed.”

A man pictured this month running down a busy street in St Kilda without his pants. Picture: Instagram

Syringes in the gutter, streets almost abandoned

In the corner of a small park adjacent to the closed gates of an adventure playground, a pair of drug users — one shirtless — are stopping passersby to have a chat.

A block away, drug paraphernalia including syringes have been discarded in the gutter next to a boarded up milk bar.

A woman is rifling through a recycling bin and a homeless man is sleeping under the alfresco tables at one of the most popular Italian restaurants in Melbourne.

This is what the bayside suburb of St Kilda looked like at 11am on Monday morning, the same day the Dutch tourist would be attacked and another man stabbed on Fitzroy Street.

The once-buzzing strip, described earlier this week as so deserted that you could “shoot a bloody cannon down the street and not hit anyone”, is eerily quiet. Foot traffic is almost non-existent.

A handful of diners are drinking their morning coffee at a cafe 20 metres away from where two homeless men have set themselves up.

Fitzroy Street in St Kilda was deserted on Monday.

You could “shoot a bloody cannon down the street”.

Two people in a park opposite a children’s adventure playground on Monday.

The problems impacting St Kilda are complex, but as drug use and anti-social behaviour increases, local authorities are being forced to consider creative solutions.

The City of Port Phillip will tonight vote on a drastic move that could change local laws in the municipality to give greater power to council staff and authorised officers.

Councillor Rod Hardy has put forward a motion to request that council officers investigate the feasibility, cost and timeline associated with changing the city’s local laws to include that:

1) a person must not on council land, road or footpath behave in a manner which unreasonably interferes with another person including sitting, sleeping or laying;

2) a person must not reside in temporary accommodation including a vehicle, tent or caravan ... that allows a living arrangement or sleep on council land.

The proposed law changes would also allow a council staff member or authorised officer to “remove furniture ... that allows living arrangement” and “dispose of any item or items removed”.

In the notice of motion, Cr Hardy wrote: “Over time I have seen the amenity of our municipality deteriorate to the point where the community is constantly raising to council how unsafe they feel.

A woman going through a bin on Monday morning in St Kilda.

Drug paraphernalia in the gutter on Grey Street, St Kilda.

Council says there are more than 150 drug bins in the area.

“My proposed amendments to the existing local law strengthen, give greater authority and clarity to council staff and authorised officers in preserving the amenity of the City of Port Phillip for all residents.”

He wrote that the council would “maintain our ongoing compassionate approach to assisting the most vulnerable”.

News.com.au has approached Cr Hardy and Mayor Louise Crawford for comment.

On the issue of drug use, assaults and anti-social behaviour in St Kilda, a council spokesperson told news.com.au there are 158 infectious waste containers “in parks, public toilets and laneways across the municipality”.

“Proactive Council patrols of high use laneways occur twice a week and our Rapid Response Team patrols every day of the year and removes any syringes they may find,” they said.

“We are continuing to make every effort as we work to solve the concerns expressed by many residents and traders around community safety.

“Community safety is complex and requires collaboration between our City, Victoria Police, the Victorian Government and a range of agencies. We are doing our best to facilitate this collaboration.”

Originally published as Tourist assaulted by ‘person on drugs’ on violent night in St Kilda