‘Too little, too late’: Stabbing victim’s daughter shares brutal reality of state’s promise to tackle youth crime crisis
The daughter of a grandmother who was stabbed to death at a shopping centre has issued a blistering attack on Qld government.
The daughter of a grandmother who was fatally stabbed at a shopping centre has delivered a scathing review of the state government’s promises to tackle Queensland’s youth crime crisis.
Vyleen White, 70, died after she was allegedly stabbed in front of her granddaughter in the underground carpark of an Ipswich shopping centre on February 3.
A 16-year-old boy has been charged with her murder.
Her death is the latest in a series of violent crimes allegedly committed by teenagers across Queensland and has given rise to renewed pledges from politicians and police that they will crackdown on the youth crime crisis.
Ms White’s daughter Cindy Micallef said promises from leaders are “too little, too late”.
“I mean I know people have been campaigning for this for a long time but it should never have come to this,” she told Sunrise on Tuesday.
“They better move quickly and get it done, that’s all I’m saying. I never want this to happen to anyone else again.”
The Queensland Government has said they will fast-track laws to stop the sale of knives to minors and expand police powers to search for weapons.
“For us as a family, we’re pushing for these people to make these changes in the laws so this never, ever has to happen again,” Ms Micallef said.
“They are now answerable to Queenslanders, to our family, to Australians.
“Stop being soft on this stuff.”
Ms Micallef said her family is feeling “pretty rough” but wanted to thank members of the public for reaching out and sharing their love and support.
“The outpouring from the community has just blown us away. It’s really touched our hearts,” she said.