A 12-year-old boy has died and his father is in a critical condition after police shot the man at a sports oval in the state’s south.
Commander Doug Fryer said that four local police arrived at the oval on Frankston-Flinders Road in Tyabb, on the Mornington Peninsula, on Wednesday evening shortly having been called there by paramedics.
A junior cricket team had just finished training.
Police arrived and were confronted with a man holding a knife.
They attempted to “talk him down” unsuccessfully then tried to subdue him with OC foam, they later shot him once in the chest, he said.
“This was a dynamic, live critical incident. I won’t comment on their exact conduct.” he said.
Emergency services were called to the oval earlier after a primary-school-aged boy sustained head injuries.
He was treated by paramedics but died at the scene.
An Ambulance Victoria spokeswoman said that paramedics had also treated a man in his 50s for chest injuries, and flew him to the Alfred Hospital.
The man is in a critical condition with life-threatening injuries.
Commander Doug Fryer said the boy’s injuries were ‘significant’ and ‘quite brutal’.
He said police had already spoken to witnesses at the scene, including some children, and called for others who police believed had yet to come forward to call CrimeStoppers.
He would not comment on what else police saw at the scene, but said that the incident was” complicated” and involved other locations.
He would not confirm or deny reports from witnesses on social media of an altercation between the father and the son beforehand.
Commander Fryer said that Homicide Squad were investigating the boy’s death and that Professional Standards Command were looking into the police officers’ conduct.
He said that IBAC had also been called and would provide further oversight.
Commander Fryer said the child’s mother had been told of his death and was distraught: “The mother has been advised, she was in the vicinity at the time but I can’t go into the details of what she saw.”
“The death of a young child is always going to be horrific and I don’t know how the mother’s going to cope, she probably never will be able to.”
Police have cordoned off the oval, at Bunguyan Reserve in Tyabb, where a number of local sports clubs play, including the Tyabb Tennis Club and Tyabb Football Club.
Wayne Murray, who lives about 200 metres from the oval, said that junior cricket and football teams were playing on the oval when the police shooting happened.
“I was having tea, I walked out the back door about 30 seconds after I heard the police (drive in)…things had gone quiet and I went to turn around and you hear a pop-pop,” he said.
“It was absolute chaos once the first ambulance rolled in, a lot of police came in and then the air ambulance came in and landed on the oval.
“The oval was cleared shortly after,” he said.
Local Taylor Le brun, 16, came to the oval after she learned of the incident from neighbours.
“It’s unexpected so what could happen now? Because this has happened, what’s next? You can’t underestimate anyone now apparently.”
source: theage.com.au
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