By Cassandra Morgan and Alexander Darling
A Wyndham Vale father whose son died during a suspected gang attack says he finds it hard to accept it was a case of mistaken identity.
Thirteen people, including several teenagers, were arrested on Tuesday over the stabbing death of 24-year-old Lino Atem.
Lino Atem was attacked in a park in January.Credit: Facebook
Atem died after he and his friends were set upon in a park on Haines Drive in Wyndham Vale in Melbourne’s outer west on the night of January 10.
In an update on Tuesday, police said there was nothing to suggest the attack was targeted. But Deng Atem, Lino’s father, said this was difficult for him to process.
“Yes, it’s a mistake, but how can you attack someone you don’t know?” he told The Age.
Deng Atem said Monday marked two months since Lino’s death, and that his family had been fearful since then.
Deng Atem spoke of his family’s immense grief. Credit: Luis Ascui
“When I go to work I worry. Maybe another crime has happened, I don’t know,” he said.
“When I came here, I came here to save my kids, I didn’t come here to lose them. I’ve lost two sons now.”
Lino’s oldest brother, Atem Atem, was shot dead two years ago. Deng Atem says he is still waiting for justice in this case too.
He said he was grateful to the schools and churches his family went to for supporting his family, coming to talk to him at their house, and giving his family all day to pray in church when both Atem and Lino died.
Deng Atem also said he also supported the recently floated idea of Victoria banning machetes, saying he hoped conditions could be made safer so that other families didn’t suffer the way his has.
Major operation
More than 160 detectives executed warrants across 12 suburbs after Lino’s death. All of those arrested interviewed were released pending further inquiries.
Victoria Police Detective Acting Inspector Adam Shoesmith said Lino Atem was simply socialising in the park when he was attacked.
“While we believe this incident was targeted, there is nothing to indicate why the group was attacked, and police believe it is likely a case of mistaken identity,” Shoesmith said in a statement.
“We know there are people out there who can help us identify those responsible. People who may have been present at the time of the incident, or people who may have heard information about these incidents after the fact. Whatever that information is – police want to hear it.
“We can’t imagine how difficult it must be for the Atem family knowing there are people out there who could help solve this and hold their loved one’s killers to account, and yet they are choosing not to.”
The search warrants were in Aintree, Deer Park, Manor Lakes, Sunshine West, Albanvale, Mornington, Werribee, Deanside, Hoppers Crossing, Melton South, Keilor and Braybrook.
Seven males aged under 18 were among those arrested. The youngest was 15, and the eldest of the group was 22.
A forensics officer at the crime scene.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui
“Police also seized a number of items from the addresses including two motor vehicles,” Victoria Police said.
In February 2023, Atem Atem, Lino’s oldest brother, was shot outside the family home after a large group of people confronted him and another two men at the house.
At the time, Detective Inspector Chris Murray described it as “two young men … at home minding their own business when this tragic event occurred”.
The Atem family, which includes eight children, moved to Australia from South Sudan in 2003 and has lived in Wyndham Vale since 2007. The family’s dog was also shot in the 2023 attack.
“At this stage there is nothing to indicate the deaths of Lino and Atem are linked,” police said on Tuesday.
With Angus Delaney
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