By Cassandra Morgan and Isabel McMillan
When enraged high school teacher Kim Ramchen walked into his principal’s office allegedly armed with a knife, he had never been so angry in his life. One thought dominated his mind: to “completely incapacitate” his employer.
That’s the claim aired in Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, one day after Keysborough Secondary College, in Melbourne’s south-east, was plunged into lockdown just before school pick-up.
Kim Ramchen’s brother, Lev Ramchen, outside Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.Credit: Simon Schluter
Ramchen – a 37-year-old from Mulgrave with a maths-related doctorate – had worked at the school for the past two years but recently discovered his contract would expire at the end of the school term, the court was told.
Ramchen’s lawyer said his client had sought a meeting about renewing his role but was not successful. On Tuesday, he allegedly marked his class’s roll at 3pm, then walked to principal Aaron Sykes’ office.
Sykes told police he saw Ramchen walk by his open office door. But Ramchen alleged he tried to talk to Sykes before the principal shut the office door in his face.
Police allege Ramchen then went to a kitchen opposite the principal’s office and grabbed a 10-centimetre knife from the drawer before returning and launching an immediate attack.
The teacher cut the principal’s lip and arm with the knife and held the weapon to Sykes’ throat, police said.
Police said assistant principal Matthew Sloan heard screaming and managed to pull Ramchen off Sykes before losing sight of Ramchen in a hallway and calling for the school to be locked down.
Outside the school on Wednesday morning, students told this masthead they were forced to hide during the lockdown.
“You know what you see in movies in, like, America,” year 8 student Kerim said, standing beside a family member. “It’s just like one of those, but in real life, experiencing it.
Teacher Kim Ramchen was arrested after allegedly stabbing a Melbourne high school principal.Credit: Nine News
“We were hiding for a good 20 minutes … until another alarm came out saying you can go outside. I felt relieved that nothing was going to happen.”
Back in court, police said Sloan soon found Ramchen again, rifling through a cutlery drawer in the kitchen. This time, he allegedly grabbed a 30-centimetre knife before he went into Sykes’ office and attacked him a second time, holding the weapon close to the principal’s face, the court heard.
Staff managed to restrain Ramchen, and police said he was lucky he sustained only non-serious cuts. The teacher later told police he “mentally snapped” and wanted to “completely incapacitate the principal”, the court was told.
“I’ve never been so angry in my life,” Ramchen allegedly said in a police interview.
The teacher’s older brother, Lev Ramchen, the self-proclaimed “parent” of the family – following their mother Jacqui Ramchen’s disappearance in 1992 and their father’s death in 2002 – said he and his brother’s wife were shocked by the alleged attack.
Kim Ramchen was charged with offences including assault and intentionally causing injury.
“[We are shocked] and bewildered,” Lev told the court. “It’s just out of character and came out of the blue for all of us.”
Ramchen was only four when his mother vanished; his father, Slavik Ramchen, had been suspected of having had a hand in his wife’s disappearance. He died in 2002 from pancreatic cancer after murder charges against him were dropped.
Staff and students arriving at Keysborough Secondary College on Wednesday morning.Credit: Simon Schluter
The now 37-year-old Kim Ramchen shares a three-year-old son with his wife and is the breadwinner of his family, Lev said. He said he suspected his brother was on the autism spectrum.
“Kim is a quiet person,” he said.
Lev, a commercial lawyer turned property investor, described their father as an overbearing person, and a “patriarch” – a very traditional man.
The teacher said he felt a “tide of emotion” coming over him before Tuesday’s alleged attacks, the likes of which he’d never felt before, his lawyer said.
Kim Ramchen’s brother, Lev Ramchen, and an unidentified woman leave Dandenong Court on Wednesday.Credit: Simon Schluter
After deliberating on Ramchen’s bail application over the lunch break, Magistrate Andrew Walker ultimately decided the teacher would still pose a significant safety risk to Sykes if he were released on bail.
“The fact is, in these circumstances, we have no explanation of what caused this man to do what he did yesterday,” he said.
“Numerous mentions have been made of [the] potential mental health issues Mr Ramchen may suffer, but I have no material from any psychiatrist.
“In my view, at this point in time, the risk ... is simply unknown. The magnitude of the risk, on the basis of what Mr Ramchen demonstrated he was capable of doing yesterday, is in my view extreme. Any use of a knife in circumstances such as what Mr Ramchen did yesterday, could easily result in injury or death.
A staff briefing was held on Wednesday morning and wellbeing staff were on campus.Credit: Simon Schluter
“Given the seriousness of the alleged conduct, were Mr Ramchen to snap, my view is that there is nothing his wife or brother could do to stop him. At this point in time, bail is refused.”
Ramchen sat in silence with his head down as the court heard he would remain in custody until his next appearance in January.
Keysborough Secondary College was plunged into lockdown about 3pm on Tuesday following the incident, forcing some students to hide under desks.
On Wednesday morning, Sykes was recovering at home as students arrived at the school in Melbourne’s south-east for classes as usual.
Parent Liz Tsareva, who said she barely slept after Tuesday’s incident.Credit: Simon Schluter
No children were involved in Tuesday’s alleged attacks.
Parent Liz Tsareva said her husband arrived to pick up their son from school, but the teenager told them he was hiding under a table. She said she barely slept that night.
“It’s horrible. Children should be safe in school,” Tsareva said. “I think the school should solve the problem.”
Another parent, Doris Anati, said she was scared after her daughter told her about the lockdown.
Parent Doris Anati during school drop-off on Wednesday morning.Credit: Simon Schluter
“I’m calm now knowing it’s not an outsider coming into the school,” Anati said during school drop-off on Wednesday.
In a letter to families, Acacia Campus principal Natalie Fode said Sykes was “recovering well and in good spirits given the circumstances”.
“The alleged perpetrator is with police and will not at any stage be back on school grounds,” Fode wrote in the letter.
“Any form of violence within our school is entirely unacceptable. We are proud of the safe and supportive culture that is the norm at our school.”
Sykes was formerly principal at Melba College, which The Age recognised with a Schools That Excel prize in 2021.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan described the incident as incredibly distressing.
“It’s horrifying for this to happen in any workplace, but for it to happen in a school is deeply horrifying,” Allan said.
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