Eight people are on the run after fleeing a fatal car crash in Alice Springs, where youth crime is spiking.
Northern Territory Police are yet to track down the men who ran from the scene of the crash on Friday, with CCTV footage showing an 18-year-old passenger sitting on the window ledge when the allegedly stolen car flipped.
He was crushed and killed by the vehicle and left there by the driver and other passengers.
Assistant Commissioner Travis Wurst said the Alice Springs community had not been assisting police to track down the men.
"There has been a distinct lack of information being provided by the community, we know there were eight people who did not help their friend who later died," he said on Monday.
"All of those persons climbed out of the vehicle and four of them actually climbed straight over the top of that person and then ran ... not one came to render assistance to that person."
Mr Wurst said police would track down the men but called on the public to provide further information.
Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Linda Burney visited Alice Springs on Monday, describing the events as "sad and tragic".
"These issues are complex and will take time to work through," she said.
She also defended Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, 12 months after his emergency visit to the town during a spate of alcohol-fuelled violence.
"He has an enormous commitment, otherwise we would not be standing here in Central Australia … this is my sixth trip to Alice Springs.
"Believe me, there is a commitment to Central Australia," she said.
Burglaries and break-ins spiked across the territory over the weekend, stretching police resources.
An elderly Alice Springs couple was allegedly robbed at knifepoint in their own home on Sunday morning, with four people in their twenties arrested hours later.
In Darwin, police are investigating up to twenty reported unlawful entries, and four stolen vehicles are yet to be found.
On Friday night three children held up a couple at knifepoint and stole their car from a car park in Darwin's northern suburbs.
They allegedly drove to a nearby service station and threatened the employee with a knife before stealing cash and fleeing.
The trio was spotted walking through the suburbs and when questioned by police said another group of youths had stolen the car from them.
Two 13-year-olds were arrested and police said they later arrested another 14-year-old in the stolen car.
Two other teenagers were apprehended on Sunday after allegedly breaking into a sports club and stealing alcohol.
Early on Monday, police received reports of multiple stolen cars driving erratically in Darwin's outer suburbs.
Officers and the dog squad arrested two teenagers in one car while the other car was later used to ram-raid a tobacconist in the city.
A 12 and a 14-year-old were arrested at the scene.
"At times we are challenged by simultaneous commissions of crime in certain pockets of the NT, and that does stretch our resources," Mr Wurst said.
Chief Minister Eva Lawler said the government was working hard at addressing crime in the NT and was "shocked" to hear of the Alice Springs fatal crash.
"I cannot believe his friends running off and leaving somebody and I would hope none of my family, my children would ever do that," she said on Monday.
"(But) there is no quick fix and don't let anybody tell you there is a quick fix around addressing these issues, it is constant hard work and perseverance."
The number of violent offences committed by children in the territory has skyrocketed over the past four years.
Nearly 2000 violent offences by youths were reported in the year to November 2023 – a 50 per cent rise on 2019-20.
