A Melbourne shopkeeper who allegedly came to the aid of fellow retailers during a theft is not expected to survive, after he was allegedly bashed by a group of children as young as 12.
Van Viet Truong, 60, was seriously injured in Sunshine, Victoria, about 2pm on Saturday, after allegedly chasing five children who had fled another store with stolen goods.
Police allege the group – three boys and two girls aged 12, 13, 14 and 15 from Melbourne’s Brimbank and Banyule areas – assaulted Truong, leaving him with critical injuries.
CCTV footage shows Truong chasing the group before a scuffle breaks out. He appears to push one of the children before being struck in the head. The remainder of the alleged assault occurred out of view.
Police believe Truong was struck in the head multiple times and that his head also hit the ground when he fell.
Five children have since been arrested. A 12-year-old boy appeared before a children’s court on Sunday, where a magistrate said Truong’s injuries were unsurvivable.
According to Seven News, the magistrate said the man was “left in an unsurvivable situation and it’s inevitable the charges of affray and intentionally causing serious injury will be upgraded”.
“Within days or hours, that victim will die, that was the grim message from a magistrate at a children’s court,” reporter Jacqueline Stanley said.
The 12-year-old boy’s mother unsuccessfully applied for bail, telling the court she feared for her son’s mental health and safety.
Magistrate Robyn Hamilton said the boy’s alleged actions had “resulted in the worst possible outcome”.
Several of the teenagers are expected to return to court later this week for further bail hearings.
Truong, who owns Hong Hung Asian Grocery, is well known in the local community as someone who was hard-working and rarely took time off. He is understood to be married with two young children.
“He loved his wife so much and he’s got two kids. He worked hard,” a fellow shopkeeper said.
Victoria’s new Premier, Ben Carroll, described the alleged attack as “completely unacceptable”.
“This is terrible what occurred to this gentleman, there’s no tolerance for this sort of behaviour. It’s awful … it’s completely unacceptable,” Carroll said.
He also acknowledged the case should be considered under Victoria’s “adult time for violent crime” initiative.
Truong remains in a critical condition as family members continue to keep vigil by his hospital bedside.
Image: 7News
