A Melbourne shopkeeper has died after he was allegedly attacked by a group of children as young as 12 while trying to help another retail worker during a suspected theft.
Van Viet Truong, 60, stepped in after a fellow shop worker was allegedly being robbed at a business on Hampshire Road in the Melbourne suburb of Sunshine shortly after 2pm last week. The grocery store owner chased after the group when the incident unfolded before a confrontation broke out in the street.
CCTV footage shows the attack
CCTV footage appears to show Mr Truong pushing one of the children before he was struck in the head. What happened next was out of view of the security cameras. According to Victoria Police, the 60-year-old suffered serious head injuries after he was allegedly struck in the head several times before hitting his head on the ground. He was taken to hospital, where he died on Wednesday afternoon.
Charges upgraded to manslaughter
Three boys aged 12, 13 and 15 from the Brimbank area, a 14-year-old girl from the Banyule area and another 14-year-old girl from the Brimbank area were initially charged with affray, violent disorder, intentionally causing serious injury and intentionally causing injury. They were remanded to appear before a children's court at a later date.
Police later withdrew the charges against the 13-year-old boy after further investigations cleared him. Following Mr Truong's death, detectives from Victoria Police's homicide squad upgraded charges against a 15-year-old boy from the Brimbank area, with the additional charge of manslaughter pertaining to the now-fatal assault.
Court proceedings and reaction
Magistrate Robyn Hamilton had earlier indicated the charges were likely to be upgraded, telling the children's court the victim had been "left in an unsurvivable situation". She said: "Within days or hours, that victim will die, that was the grim message from a magistrate at a children's court."
Magistrate Hamilton also said the alleged actions of the children had "resulted in the worst possible outcome". According to news.com.au, the mother of one of the accused boys broke down in tears as she asked the court to grant bail to her 12-year-old son, citing concerns for his mental and physical wellbeing. Her application was unsuccessful.
Several of the teenagers are expected to return to court later this week for further bail hearings.
Public and official response
Speaking on 3AW radio, presenter Jacqui Felgate said the incident should have dominated headlines, arguing youth crime had become normalised. She said: "We have allowed children to think that this is OK. That actions don't have consequences and that if you commit a crime you don't go to jail."
Victorian Premier Ben Carroll described the alleged attack as "completely unacceptable". He said: "This is terrible what occurred to this gentleman, there's no tolerance for this sort of behaviour. It's awful … it's completely unacceptable." Mr Carroll also said the case should be considered under Victoria's "adult time for violent crime" initiative.
