‘We feel anxious, helpless and frustrated with the broken system’: Alleged victims speak out

A teen accused of murdering GP Ash Gordon allegedly carried out a near-identical attack during an aggravated burglary three months earlier. Now the alleged victims have hit out at the “broken” justice system.

Ash Gordon was stabbed to death this month after confronting knife-wielding ­intruders at his Doncaster home.

Earlier alleged victims of a teen accused of going on to murder Doncaster doctor Ash Gordon while on bail say the 16-year-old was involved in an almost identical attack at their home.

They accused the state government of having “blood on its hands” because in their view the teen should not have been bailed after he was accused of being involved in the aggravated burglary in October that led to a man suffering serious head injuries from a machete attack.

Dr Gordon, 33, was stabbed to death this month after confronting knife-wielding ­intruders at his home.

The Herald Sun revealed on Saturday that one teen was on bail at the time of Dr Gordon’s death.

Police investigating in Doncaster after the death of Ash Gordon. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Now the alleged victims of the earlier incident say they have been traumatised by the similarities between the incidents.

“The incident has left us traumatised to say the least,” they said in a statement.

“We are trying to move on with our lives, however, when a case on (alleged) teen crime is reported, we feel anxious, helpless and frustrated with the broken system.

“Our heart breaks for Ash’s family and loved ones during this difficult time.

“The Allan government and the justice system have blood on their hands, and ultimately should be held accountable.”

Under the terms of the boy’s bail he was subject to a nightly curfew.

Jacinta Allan now faces pressure to dump an overhaul of the youth justice system including plans to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14.

Under current plans, the government has committed to raising the age a child can be arrested, charged or jailed from 10 to 12 by the end of this year.

The age will be raised again to 14 by 2027 with the exception of some crimes, including homicides.

The Premier says the planned reforms are a key priority of the government.

“There’s a huge amount of work that’s being undertaken by Victoria Police to work with those young people, to work with their families as well, with other agencies, to get in and prevent future criminal ­activity,” she said.

“That sort of prevention-based activity is the best way to address future youth crime.

“At the same time, when offences are made, Victoria Police have the tools and resources to deal with those.”

Ms Allan said Victoria had “some of the lowest crime rates in the country”.

“We should be celebrating the fact we live in a community that is safe, that is secure, and the crime statistics absolutely bear that out,” she said.

Opposition Leader John Pesutto called on the government to drop its plans to raise the age of responsibility.

“All Victorians would be rightly concerned by the recent spate of aggravated burglaries and other violent crime,” he said.

“Jacinta Allan needs to scrap Labor’s plan to raise the age of criminal responsibility and reverse its decision to weaken bail laws.

“Labor needs to also restore the funding it has slashed in crime prevention and youth justice so we can tackle a 10-year high in youth crime.

“Victorians are looking for the Premier to lead on this critical issue to ensure we are doing everything we can to protect community safety.”

The government has also recommitted to easing youth bail laws this year.