Youth gang crime has been branded a cancer as a state turns to local experts in response to the double murder of two innocent boys.
Dau Akueng, 15, and another boy, 12, were walking home in Cobblebank, late on Saturday when police say they were ambushed by eight masked males and fatally stabbed.
The search for the perpetrators, whom authorities say could have gang links, continued on Tuesday amid calls for tougher penalties for weapons-related violence.
Offences statewide committed by youths aged 10 to 17 jumped 17.9 per cent in the year to March to its highest level since records began in 1993, according to the latest crime statistics.
Premier Jacinta Allan said she spoke with South Sudanese Community of Melton chair John Garang Kon and South Sudanese Community of Wyndham chair Richard Deng on Monday.
“I told them that we mourn with them following the loss of two children in a shocking and violent killing,“ she said in a statement.
“I told them we stand with them in their fight against the cancer of youth gang crime that is breaking their community’s heart.“
The Labor leader wants locals to bring “local solutions“ to government and has convened a South Sudanese Australian youth justice expert working group.
“The solutions to the fight against violent crime can’t just be imposed upon the community. They must come from the community,“ Ms Allan said.
Police Minister Anthony Carbines conceded people believed youth crime in Victoria was at its worst.
The state government had responded to police frustration by legislating to strengthen bail laws and bolster stop and search powers, he said, without pledging further legal changes.
Werribee MP John Lister thanked the police involved in the incidents and welcomed government-community cooperation.
“I share the Premier’s condolences for the families of the young men who have been the victims of these horrific crimes and welcome the announcement to reconvene the Expert Working Group.”
Police believe the ambush was targeted, but are not ruling out a case of mistaken identity, saying the victims were not gang members.
