Stores were forced to lock staff and customers inside on Tuesday after three people were attacked, apparently by a group of teenagers, one of whom was armed with a knife.
Two male offenders allegedly assaulted three victims inside the Bayside Shopping Centre on Tuesday at around 10.50am.
Police believe one of the boys was carrying a “sharp weapon” during the incident.
Then he cut off his hand and fled the place.
Officers found the weapon in a nearby trash can.
Eyewitnesses said they saw one of the young men carrying a knife.
The three victims suffered minor injuries in the attack, but did not require treatment.
It is not yet clear whether the victims were known to the perpetrators or were just random shoppers.
One shopper told the Herald Sun that witnesses were begging the boy to “throw the knife away”.
Blood was seen on the floor of the shopping centre, although paramedics were not called to the scene.
Eyewitnesses said one of the injured was being protected by Pandora employees, who hid the victim inside the store and locked the revolving doors.
Melbourne Defence Academy has revealed it has launched a self-defence course on the streets of Frankston in light of the incident.
“It is so sad to see how the world has changed to a place where it is no longer safe to go to stores.
“That’s why we’re so passionate about women’s self-defense.
“Frankston Street Self Defence Course Starting Soon.”
Community members are calling for increased security measures at shopping malls, including metal detectors.
“The world is no longer a world. You can do as much damage with a knife as you can with a gun. We need metal detectors in malls,” one person wrote on Facebook.
“It’s time to put up metal detectors and security checks at the main entrances. Enough is enough,” one commenter wrote.
