‘The whole centre was frantic’: Machete pulled in Melton West shopping centre fight

Woodgrove Shopping Centre in Melton West was locked down and shoppers were left screaming as a machete was used in a fight between two groups of youths.

Terrified shoppers ran to hide in stores as the violent fight unfolded in the middle of Woodgrove Shopping Centre. Picture: Supplied

Three teenagers have been arrested after a terrifying incident where a youth allegedly tried to slash a teenage boy with a machete at a Melton West shopping centre.

Officers were called to reports of a physical altercation between two groups at Woodgrove Shopping Centre on High Street about 2.45pm on Tuesday.

One of the groups fled the scene into a nearby supermarket, where they were allegedly followed by the other group and threatened with a weapon.

Three male teenagers fled the scene on foot an were arrested in the shopping centre car park.

The teens, aged 14, 15 and 16, all from Brookfield, were on Tuesday assisting police with inquiries.

A shopping centre worker said she was stunned when she heard a male walk past yelling “meet me outside” as he was clutching a machete.

The young woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said she saw a male further down the shopping centre lying on his back.

She said elderly customers were heard screaming before shops began to lock their doors and invite stranded shoppers to take refuge inside.

“The whole centre was frantic, it was so scary, to have someone less than 2m away holding that knife, I think if I don’t try and laugh it will really affect me,” the worker said.

“A few people I have spoken to said it was 100 per cent gang related.”

She said the shopping centre was in lockdown for about 20 minutes to half an hour before shops began to reopen and police reassured visitors it was safe again.

A young woman who witnessed the attack told the Herald Sun she saw a young man take a swing at another boy with the weapon before chasing a group of boys through the complex with it.

Terrified patrons, including the woman, ran to hide in nearby stores as the violent fight unfolded in the middle of the shopping centre.

“One of them pulled out a machete and swung it at one of the other boy’s backs,” the woman said.

“I ran into a shop where I saw (another) one of the guys pull a machete from his waistband and chase the boys.”

One Melton resident, Olivia, said she took refuge in a clothing store with her daughter after two women ran inside and asked workers to lock the doors and call police.

Olivia said she first heard shouting that was not uncommon at the centre but it quickly escalated and involved a number of racial slurs being slung between the groups.

“A lady ran in behind me and she looked terrified. She said one of the boys holding the knife had just kind of brushed her shoulder as he was running away,” Olivia said.

“We felt safe as the doors were locked and even though it went so quickly I was just contemplating what I would do had the group tried to go inside, I would have just gone into mum-mode and grabbed my girls and the people around me and tried to get into the change rooms.”

“Sadly youth crime and these sort of gang incidents are not unusual, we see violence spike across Melton after school and during the holidays and I just think a lot of these kids are bored and don’t have much else exciting to do.

“Another woman said she saw the boys trying to sort of conceal the knives in their clothing as they ran away, but at least one was quite large.

“I am still processing it, you do feel a bit safer when you learn it is not a random attack and appears to be targeted between people known to each other, but it’s not what you expect when you head down to the shops.”

A police spokeswoman said there were no injuries.

Officers allegedly seized a machete and a knife from the group.

It is believed the parties are known to each other.