Allan flags new police powers to tackle gang violence following boys’ murder

1 week ago 3

New police powers will be considered by the government as it faces pressure to bolster penalties for violent crime, following the shocking murder of two children in Melbourne’s outer-west.

Police are still hunting for the masked assailants, armed with knives and machetes, who on Saturday evening killed 12-year-old Chol Achiek and friend Dau Akueng, 15, in an ambush in Cobblebank, near Melton.

Stabbing victims Dau Akueng, 15 (left), and Chol Achiek, 12.

Speaking at her first press conference since the boys’ deaths, Premier Jacinta Allan on Tuesday conceded more had to be done about violent crime following the weekend’s “senseless act of violence”.

She said the government was “absolutely working with police and potentially looking at what more, by way of powers and laws, that need to be provided”.

“I think what we can absolutely recognise that there is, in some parts of our community, there is an ongoing pattern of behaviour, and we’ve toughened the bail books to deal with repeat serious offending,” Allan said.

“There is more work that needs to be done to understand what was behind this senseless act of violence on the weekend, and the way you do that is by listening to those community leaders and listening to Victoria Police.”

She did not provide more details on what extra powers could be considered.

Premier Jacinta Allan at Tuesday’s press conference.

The premier’s comments came ahead of a fiery question time on Tuesday, which was dominated by questions about law and order and the government’s response to the boys’ deaths.

Opposition Leader Brad Battin was suspended from parliament for the rest of the day after accusing the Speaker of wanting to “silence the opposition”. Almost all the opposition MPs then walked out in protest.

Victoria’s police chief backed a call for tougher youth crime punishments after one of his senior detectives, Detective Inspector Graham Banks, on Sunday said penalties for serious crimes were not in line with community expectations.

Elbino Akueng, the father of Dau, also said he was dismayed by the lack of police action after recent incidents of teens wielding machetes in his area, Melbourne’s outer-west.

While Allan has not flagged any imminent changes to sentencing laws, she said it was her “absolute expectation” that the courts and the entire legal system put community safety first.

On Monday, the premier announced a South Sudanese youth justice working group – which will include ministers and police – saying solutions to the fight against violent crime had to come from within the community.

Battin said the government needed to ensure sentencing was in line with community expectations but did not provide specific details on any potential opposition policies.

“We will look at all proposals when it comes to sentencing in Victoria to ensure that the community can be kept safe,” he said.

Battin said the opposition was examining all possible policies to help reduce crime – including crime prevention to keep kids out of jail – and punitive measures, such as tougher sentencing.

Allan defended taking two days to publicly respond to the deaths, saying her focus was supporting the grieving families and not on “political point-scoring”.

“I will not act in a reckless, politically point-scoring way like the leader of the opposition does time and time and time again,” Allan said in today’s press conference.

“That is not leadership, that is not looking at addressing the challenges that have been faced by many in our community, that is just reckless … political behaviour that is all about political point-scoring, not about supporting communities and not about understanding what is driving this dangerous behaviour that we all need to address together.”

The calls for tougher penalties come despite the government having recently introduced a suite of law-and-order reforms. Last month, parliament passed stricter bail conditions for serious repeat offenders and new “post and boast” laws targeting criminals who film their offences.

A statewide ban on machetes also came into effect at the start of September, carrying penalties of up to two years’ prison or a $47,000 fine. An amnesty for people to surrender the weapons is in place until November 30.