Hoddle Street mass murderer Julian Knight wants compensation for alleged assaults

HODDLE Street mass murderer Julian Knight blames his shooting rampage on alleged assaults and is trying to get compensation.

Under heavy police guard, Julian Knight, 19, who shot dead seven people and wounded 19. Picture: Michael Potter

HODDLE Street mass murderer Julian Knight has represented himself in a Melbourne court as he tries to gain compensation for alleged assaults in the military.

Wearing a black suit and leather shoes, the man who murdered seven people and injured 19 others during a shooting rampage in 1987 in Clifton Hill in Melbourne’s northeast, appeared in the Federal Court of Australia on Thursday to argue his case, which will be decided after a hearing in September.

Knight is challenging the Commonwealth over a decision that denied him compensation over alleged assaults while he was a cadet at The Royal Military College, Duntroon in Canberra in the 1980s.

The Herald Sun reports his bid was rejected by the Defence Department Abuse Tribunal last year but in February, the Federal Court heard the decision was being reconsidered following an appeal lodged by Knight.

The mass murderer blamed his shooting rampage on the alleged abuse, which he claims happened at Duntroon in Canberra while he was a cadet.

Julian Knight claims he was abused when he was a cadet.

According to the Herald Sun a policeman who interviewed Knight following his rampage said the murderer was delighted when reliving the shooting spree.

“He was very happy and actually wanted to tell the story,” Detective Graham Kent said.

“(It was like) this was his 15 minutes and he had the bragging rights, and he wanted to say how well he’d done. For him it was an adventure.

“My feelings were only about staying focused on the job. It was critical to record what this guy had to say in a way that would be admissible in court.”

Knight is serving a minimum sentence of 27 years behind bars and was about 19-years-old when he went on his shooting spree.

He was eligible for parole in 2014 but the Victorian government said it was unlikely Knight would ever be released.

He is serving his sentence in Port Phillip Prison in Truganina near Victoria.