By Ethan Benedicto, Cam Lucadou-Wells
Local residents and workers at Berwick Village are in shock after the stabbing incident on Sunday 11 August that resulted in the hospitalisation of two victims.
Victoria Police have alleged that Jickany Puoch, 29, allegedly armed himself with the knife from a nearby store before stabbing a 24-year-old Cranbourne North man in the chest.
The wound was 5mm from his heart, according to charge sheets tendered at court.
A 77-year-old man from Berwick was injured when he intervened to subdue the man before police arrived, according to police.
Both alleged victims were taken to hospital with the 24-year-old sustaining serious injuries, and the 77-year-old with non-life threatening injuries.
Puoch was likely to have been undergoing alcohol and drug withdrawals, and diagnosed with depression and PTSD, his defence lawyer told a court hearing on Monday 12 August.
Casey Crime Investigation Unit detectives have since charged the man with reckless conduct endangering death, intentionally causing injury, affray, criminal damage and other relevant offences.
Police stated they believe it was a random attack, with the people involved not knowing each other.
Berwick MP Brad Battin released a statement on the day of the incident, posting on Facebook and thanking the “exceptionally brave community who did the right thing”.
“No one should have to see this in their workplace, our community should be safe,” he said.
This comes after claims that the perpetrator had been restrained by nearby residents inside the shopping centre after initially injuring the first victim.
Linda, a librarian from Berwick Mechanics Institute and Free Library said that she was “shocked” when she first heard the news.
“You don’t have that sort of thing here in [Berwick], but I guess no suburb is immune to these sorts of incidents,” she said.
As part of the investigation, detectives executed a warrant at a home in Berwick on the evening of 11 August where an imitation firearm and a quantity of drugs were seized.
Staff from Stepping Out Boutique said that the series of events were “awful”, but that similar incidents are more commonplace than not.
“It’s everywhere now, you’d be mad to think it’s not,” they said.
Likewise, staff from OPSM said “we’re shocked, Berwick is such a quiet place and for something like that to happen is unusual”.
“I’ve been working here for 10 years and this is the first time something like this has happened,” they said.
Akoonah Ward council candidate, Mush Rahaman said he was told by police that there will be frequent patrols in and around High Street, as well as the general area of Berwick Village over the next week.
“People are a bit nervous, the local businesses are a bit nervous, it will be for this one week so that we feel safe.
“In the meantime what I’m trying to do is communicate with all the other business owners and then maybe when we get some feedback from them we can come to a decision on the safety of the area, which we will pass on to the Narre Warren Police Station and Casey Council as well,” he said.
A local bottleshop worker who has been in the area for the last 18 years said that while there has been an increase in “interesting types of people” in Berwick, it still is “generally one of the safer areas in the southeast”.
“We still have that village feel which a lot of places don’t so it was a bit of a shock to be honest.
“It’s scary, so hopefully it’s just an outlier and not a trend, fingers crossed,” he said.
Vince, who has been working and living in the area for as long as he could remember, said that the incident has made him “wary” and “uncomfortable”; something that he said a lot of others would feel as well.
“Having worked in the finance industry for a long time and having gone through branch robberies, you certainly tend to look over your shoulder and that sort of thing.
“But being that close in this day and age doesn’t surprise me, because unfortunately there are more people like that.
“However it’s not in the character of the Berwick suburb,” he said.
