The Victorian government has doubled down on the effectiveness of its machete ban after multiple teenagers decided that Flinders Street station was the perfect venue for a Saturday night machete-themed mixer. Shocked commuters, presumably not in the mood for live-action roleplay, ran for cover as a group of youths - some visibly armed with machetes - brawled on the concourse.
Protective Services Officers, living up to their name, swarmed the station and boarded a train, where they arrested four boys and seized several machetes. Two more arrests followed nearby. One 17-year-old boy emerged from the festivities with a laceration to his arm and was taken to hospital - perhaps the only participant who got a souvenir he didn't want.
Police charged a 22-year-old man with affray, reckless cause injury, assault with a weapon, and possessing a prohibited weapon. He was granted bail and is due to appear in Melbourne magistrates court on 27 November. The remaining five - aged 13, 14, 15, and two 16-year-olds - were released, presumably to contemplate their life choices.
Government minister Harriet Shing defended the state's approach, pointing to changes in bail laws, the machete ban, new post-and-boast laws, and a violence reduction unit as evidence of progress. “What we are doing is working,” she told reporters on Sunday, adding that there's always more to do but police efforts and the machete ban are having an impact.
The government claims about 18,000 weapons have been surrendered or seized and 17,000 machetes removed from shelves since the 2025 amnesty. But the opposition wasn't buying it. Spokesperson David Southwick argued that knife attacks continue to escalate, saying, “You’ve got teenagers that are literally putting the finger at the government because they know there’s no consequences.” He declared that Victorians want consequences and that the machete policies “simply have not worked.”