Elwood College student attack and Glen Eira College kidnapping under investigation

Students are being told to keep their mobile phones out of ­public view, to walk to and from school with friends amid a spate of violent attacks on young people.

Police investigate after a teenager was kidnapped and stabbed in a violent armed robbery soon after he left school. Picture: Wayne Taylor

Students are being told to keep their mobile phones out of ­public view, to walk to and from school with friends and identify “safety spots” where they can get help amid a spate of violent attacks on young people.

Further reports of armed robberies and “brutal” assaults have emerged in the wake of an abduction that left “talented” Year 9 Glen Eira College ­student Benjamin fighting for life on Monday.

Police have revealed that since the attack another two boys, aged 14 and 16, had contacted them about being robbed or assaulted.

Schools have recently begun warning students to always go directly to school, travel in pairs or groups, remain alert and avoid using their phones while walking.

That includes at Elwood College where a student was targeted while walking to school just three days before the attack on Benjamin.

Schools have recently begun warning students to always go directly to school. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Students have also been advised to travel in pairs or groups, remain alert and avoid using their phones while walking. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

In that incident a woman who was driving a dark SUV approached the student and tried to rob him of his mobile phone.

In response Principal Todd Asensio asked parents to make sure their children kept their mobile phones in their pockets or out of view, that they walked with friends and were aware of safety spots like shops or ­reliable neighbours.

It is not yet known whether the Elwood robbery attempt is linked to the terrifying kidnapping of 14-year-old Benjamin, who was pulled into a grey Volkswagen on Monday as he walked home from school.

Yesterday he was still in the Royal Children’s Hospital in a serious but stable condition, where his aunt said she was devastated by the unprovoked attack. “They thought they could take something from him and try to take him, but he just tried to fight them off,” she told Channel 10.

“He did his best and he was hurt really badly, and I just want him to be safe.

“It’s infuriating to feel, to know that they did this to just a child.

“They need to be caught, and these people need to be punished appropriately.

“Not a slap on the wrist. They need to go to jail.”

Police cars and the mounted branch could be seen patrolling the area near Glen Eira College on Wednesday while Benjamin’s attackers, believed to be of caucasian appearance, remained on the run.

Benjamin, 14, was left fighting for life after being ambushed. Picture: Facebook

Police on horseback patrol the streets around Glen Eira College Picture: Supplied

Fellow parent Peter Winslow said he was “shocked” about what happened and that his son had asked him to drive him to and from school on Tuesday after the attack on Monday.

In a letter to the school community, Glen Eira College principal Sheereen Kindler urged students to remain on school grounds until they were picked up after school.

High profile youth worker Les Twentyman said everyday items such as mobile phones, shoes and clothing have become “just as dangerous as a gun or a knife” because they make teenagers the target of violent robberies at the hands of armed thugs.

“They are targeting these areas because they know there is wealth there,” he said.

It can also be revealed that, on Sunday morning, a carload of young people armed with machetes pulled up to a young boy walking near the corner of Laurel and Meaden streets in Ashburton before a resident scared the group away.

Anyone with information about any of these incidents should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.