Dramatic police shooting at Lilydale Marketplace unfolds on live radio
The police officers who shot at a knife-wielding man in Lilydale were not equipped with tasers, saying the man “rushed” at them during a tense stand-off. Footage has emerged of the incident unfolding. Warning: Disturbing content.
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Police say they were forced to shoot a man armed with a knife because they weren’t equipped with tasers.
Victoria Police defended its officers, saying the man “rushed” at them with a big kitchen knife during a tense stand-off in a shopping centre car park in Lilydale.
It was revealed after the incident that not all frontline police officers carry tasers.
Police Association Victoria secretary Wayne Gatt said his organisation had highlighted the issue before the last state election.
“This incident yet again highlights the prevalence of mental health issues in our community and the crisis that our members confront almost daily having to work in broken system,” Mr Gatt said.
He said it was “essential” to ensure “police have the tools and resources they need to resolve incidents safely”.
“All frontline patrols need urgent access to conducted energy devices, or tasers,” he said
The man was shot in a dramatic incident that unfolded live on Melbourne radio, with footage showing him holding a knife and pacing in front of police before the shooting.
The tense footage shows one male and one female police officer with firearms trained on the man as he walks.
The officers can be heard trying to negotiate with the man who would not put down the knife.
Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner of Capability Neil Paterson said the 24-year-old man was armed with a knife he had recently purchased.
Officers attempted to negotiate with the man for around 15 minutes but the incident escalated and the man came at police.
Neither of the two police officers had tasers on them at the time of the incident, and did not attempt to use capsicum spray.
Mr Paterson said “a number” of shots were fired at the man.
“A number of requests were made for him to drop the weapon and stay away from police, to back off from police,” Mr Paterson said.
“The man did not back off from police. A number of shots were fired, by two police members.”
One of the officers forced to fire a shot was a female constable who had only recently joined the force.
Police received a triple-0 call about 8.30am following reports the man had been wandering around the medical centre armed with the knife.
He had filled out a new patient form to be treated at the medical centre before the incident.
The man is known to police but he has a “negligible” involvement with the force.
He had been staying in the Lilydale area overnight but was from the northern suburbs of Melbourne.
Two separate police officers fired shots.
Members activated their body worn camera footage, which will form a key part of the investigation.
The man was provided “immediate” medical attention after he was shot.
“No police member comes to work wanting to engage in the use of force, and particularly to shoot someone,” Mr Paterson said.
“This was another dynamic situation involving police where unfortunately police have had to use significant force to overcome a threat to both themselves and the public.”
The man was loitering in public toilets at the shopping centre and had also purchased fire gel, which is an accelerant.
The man yelled at police, asking them to kill him, Mr Paterson said.
Police said the man who was “quite agitated” may have had mental health issues.
“It was quite clear that he ran at police towards the end of that,” Mr Paterson said.
“He was advancing quite quickly on them. It would be seconds away (from the man getting to police).
“The main police officer in that incident fell over as he was backing away, just after shots were fired.”
He explained why the police did not use capsicum spray.
“Capsicum spray just doesn’t work for some individuals,” he said.
“It is not often possible to use capsicum spray when you have someone with a knife advancing on you.”
He said tasers had not been rolled out across the entire force, citing police officers becoming injured from carrying a lot of equipment around.
“Tasers are another piece of equipment, police members are almost like packhorses with the amount of equipment they are carrying,” he said.
“Tasers can work, when you have a moving target that is particularly hard for a taser to work.
“Anytime we use critical force we undertake a review of the incident and look for opportunities to reform training and policy.”
Witness Julie Dunn said the stand-off lasted more than 30 minutes.
She was filming the incident when she was rushed inside Lilydale Marketplace for safety.
“We were ushered inside and had the doors locked behind us,” she said.
“Police were trying to talk him down but he kept walking back and forth.”
Prior to the standoff staff at Chemist Warehouse staff were seen hurriedly pulling in stock displayed outside the chemist and locking the doors behind them.
The Herald Sun has been told the man had been inside the chemist prior to the stand-off.
Police Association boss Wayne Gatt backed the officers who shot the armed man but said it was crucial frontline officers were given urgent access to tasers to reduce the risk of injury to people in crisis situations.
“This incident yet again highlights the prevalence of mental health issues in our community
and the crisis that our members confront almost daily, having to work in a broken system
that fails to provide adequate support for vulnerable people when they need it,” he said.
“Police officers and PSOs, when responding to incidents like this, require access to less than
lethal options.
“All frontline patrols need urgent access to conducted energy devices, or tasers. This is something we highlighted prior to the last state election.
“When police don’t have these tools, they possess fewer options, and fewer options can
mean the risk of serious injury or death increases dramatically.
“Ensuring people in crisis can get the help they need, when they need it, is essential. Ensuring police have the tools and resources they need to resolve incidents safely, when cases do fall through the cracks, is just as important.”
Witnesses reported the man appeared calm but noncooperative toward officers in the lead up to the shooting.
The unbelievable scenes could be heard unfolding on 3AW this morning, with caller Pauline telling broadcaster Neil Mitchell that a man was walking around Lilydale Marketplace, near Chemist Warehouse, with a “quite a large knife”.
She said there were five police trying to defuse the situation with “guns drawn.”
“He’s not waving the knife or anything, he’s just wandering,” Pauline said.
“They’re yelling at him to put the knife down, but he doesn’t seem interested in that.”
Loud shots could then be heard live on air.
“Oh my god, here comes more police … oh s---, they’re shooting. They’ve just shot. I can’t see if they shot him, but there’s just been three or four rounds.”
She said special operations police then surrounded and began securing the area.
The man was airlifted to the Royal Melbourne Hospital about 10am, where he remains in a critical condition.
Victoria Police Sergeant Megan Stefanec said officers were called to “a man armed with an edged weapon on Hutchinson Street about 8.30am”.
“A police firearm was discharged and the man received an injury to the upper body,” she said.
The man, who is in a serious condition, is receiving medical treatment at the scene.
An Ambulance Victoria spokeswoman said paramedics were called about 8.35am.
An air ambulance has also been dispatched and it is likely the man will be flown to hospital.
The shooting is now under investigation and will be overseen by Professional Standards Commands.
Radio caller, John, said he was shopping at Lilydale Marketplace when the incident unfolded this morning.
He saw a man swearing and talking to himself, wielding a nine-inch long knife, near the chemist.
He could see a female police officer with her taser drawn and a male policeman with a gun, about 10 metres away from the agitated man.
“He was definitely not himself,” John told 3AW.
“They (the police) were trying to get him to calm down. I was very pleased with how they handled it.”
Another 3AW caller, Peter, said he could see the police helicopter hovering on his morning walk.
“It’s almost like they’re trying to spot something,” he said.
“It just appears to be looking for something.”
A woman also confronted officers at the scene, screaming at them to “stop shooting people”.
A huge number of police are at the scene and can be seen bagging up evidence.
Forensic police are combing the scene of the shooting.
Bloodied clothing can be seen in the car park.
More to come
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