A mother has been taken to hospital after allegedly being repeatedly stabbed by a stranger while protecting her 10-year-old son during a “random attack” in Melbourne’s CBD.
The alleged attacker, 27, was arrested at the scene after he was restrained and pinned down by three bystanders, according to Victoria police.
The 46-year-old mother was walking along Spencer Street on Tuesday afternoon with her three children when the man allegedly “randomly punched” the child then continued to walk away.
Police alleged the man then turned around, grabbed the mother in a headlock and stabbed her repeatedly with a pair of scissors in the back and left shoulder.
The incident took place just outside the Melbourne West police station, allowing officers to attend the scene “within a minute”.
Sign up for the Breaking News Australia emailPolice Supt Zorka Dunstan, who was one of the responding officers, said she was “horrified” by the attack.
“I was in my office upstairs, saw what was happening, I came down. One of the boys, he’s an 11-year-old, he was crying … absolutely impacted by what he saw. I gave him a hug because I was impacted just watching how he reacted,” she said.
The mother was taken to the Royal Melbourne hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and was in a stable condition. Police said her 10-year-old son was also taken to hospital “as a precaution”.
The other two children were not injured.
Police confirmed the man was known to authorities in New South Wales and Western Australia with a history of family violence and assault charges. He was not on bail at the time of the alleged attack.
Police said there was “nothing to suggest there was any motivation” behind the incident and suspected it may have occurred during a mental health episode.
The alleged attacker has been deemed “not fit for interview yet” and will remain in police custody ahead of questioning.
Dunstan described the actions of the bystanders as “heroic”. She told media she had said to the 10-year-old boy “how lucky that we had such good people intervene and help his mum”.
“Any offending of this nature is horrific anywhere, so not just outside the police station, anywhere in the city or outside the city,” she said.
“Without a doubt, without their intervention, it could have been a lot worse. So, we are so grateful for their assistance, and I’m sure the family are as well.”
• This article was amended on 26 August 2026 to correct the age of the woman. Police previously said she was 30, but later clarified that she is 46.
