What we know so far:
- Five people have been killed, two of them children.
- A car ran down multiple people along Bourke Street in the Melbourne CBD about 1.30pm on Friday.
- A man identified as Dimitrious 'Jimmy' Gargasoulas allegedly drove the car.
- Gargasoulas, the sole occupant of the vehicle, was shot by police and is receiving treatment for his injuries.
- Police said the attack was not terror-related.
- Those who died include a 10-year-old girl, 25-year-old man, 33-year-old man, 32-year-old woman and a three-month-old baby boy, who died in hospital on Saturday evening.
Related coverage:
UPDATE, SUNDAY 10.25am: A vigil will be held at Federation Square in Melbourne on Monday to grieve the lives lost as a result of Friday’s carnage on Bourke Street.
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“This crime has devastated families and directly affected many hundreds of people,” Premier Daniel Andrews said in a written statement.
“We mourn those who were killed by this evil criminal act and we offer our deepest condolences to their loved ones.”
The death toll rose to five on Saturday evening after a three-month-old baby boy died in hospital.
A memorial has been established at the corner of Elizabeth and Bourke Streets, in front of the GPO, where floral tributes and letters can be left.
The state government has created a Bourke Street Fund for people who wish to make a financial contribution for the families of the victims, and contributed $100,000 to the cause.
“We grieve with them and we stand with the victims,” the premier said.
He said the Bourke Street tragedy had touched all Victorians, “and we will carry it for years to come.”
For more information about the Bourke Street Fund, click here.
UPDATE, SUNDAY 8.30am: A three-month-old boy has become the fifth person to die after Friday's Bourke Street rampage.
The baby boy died in hospital on Saturday night.
His death came as Melbourne's Jewish community mourned the death of 10-year-old Thalia Hakin, who died on Friday after a driver allegedly sped through Bourke Street mall in a ramming attack.
Two men, aged 25 and 33, and a woman, 32, also died on Friday.
The alleged driver, Dimitrious "Jimmy" Gargasoulas, remains under police guard in hospital.
He is yet to be interviewed by police.
Thirty-seven people have been treated in Melbourne hospitals after the attack. Four remain in a critical condition.
Former Victorian police commissioner Christine Nixon said on Friday she saw an upturned pram on the side of the road, after the out-of-control car had missed her by less than a metre.
She went to check and found that it was empty.
The distraught mother had reportedly asked: "Where's my child?"
The Age understands three children remain in hospital.
The Homicide Squad are investigating the incident with the assistance of the Major Collision Investigation Unit.
Police have encouraged anyone who witnessed the event or who has information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
UPDATE, SATURDAY 7pm: The Coroner has launched a forensic investigation into the incident as more details emerge about the criminal history of the alleged killer, Dimitrious "Jimmy" Gargasoulas, 26.
Known to authorities due to his history of family violence and other offences, Mr Gargasoulas had been charged over family violence related offences on January 14 and appeared before an after-hours bail justice, who allowed him to walk free – despite police opposing his release.
He was due to appear in court on Friday but instead absconded, and later used his Holden Commodore to charge through the city, eventually killing four people.
Friday’s Bourke Street attack could also affect Victoria's controversial bail laws.
With the death toll expected to rise, The Age understood Premier Daniel Andrews had convened a special cabinet sub-committee meeting on Sunday to discuss the tragedy.
The meeting was expected to discuss why the driver was freed on bail, against the wishes of police, the week before he embarked on his rampage.
"Victorians are angry today – and I'm angry too," said Mr Andrews.
"We want answers, and all of us can be confident that our government will honour the memory of those who died here with whatever change, with whatever resources, with whatever reform is required."
On Sunday, the Andrews Government will announce a new fund for people who wish to donate to the families of those killed in the Bourke Street tragedy. The state will contribute $100,000.
People have been laying floral tributes in Melbourne’s CBD throughout Saturday.
For more updates throughout the night, please visit The Age’s live coverage.
UPDATE, SATURDAY 11.23am: Bendigo resident Carly Miller was on a tram destined for the depot at Bourke Street Mall about 1.50pm on Friday when an announcement came over the speaker.
Due to a critical incident in the CBD, all trams were being stopped at the city central tram stop, about three stops before the mall.
There were quite a few trams banked up at the city central stop when the tram Mrs Miller was on arrived.
“Obviously I needed to get to Bourke Street mall, and I had no idea what was going on so I proceeded to walk to the mall,” she said.
“There were significant amounts of emergency services already on the scene.
“A lot of ambulances were driving past and a lot of police officers were running towards the scene.
“By that point, I was one street away from where the incident had occurred.”
Police tape was already blocking the area.
Mrs Miller said she saw fire trucks, and could hear at least one helicopter circling above.
“The CBD was in chaos,” she said.
“Everybody had their mobile phones out, trying to figure out what was going on.”
She said there were a lot of police talking to people on the street.
“I proceeded to go right, towards Southern Cross Station,” Mrs Miller said.
Sirens from the police cars, ambulances and fire trucks resonated during her walk down one of the streets parallel to Bourke.
“As I hit each intersection I could see the police tape that sectioned off Bourke Street,” Mrs Miller said.
”Getting closer to William Street from Bourke Street mall, there were a lot of police officers interviewing people in little alcoves.”
“A lot of people heading into William Street were quite traumatised.”
She saw a young man, accompanied by a woman Mrs Miller presumed to be his mother, talking to police.
Mrs Miller said the man was quite emotional and believed he might have seen something.
“Everybody in the street was just in raw panic,” she said.
“As you got closer to Southern Cross Station things started to get normal again.
“Every shop that had a television in it had the news going… you could see it was already all over the news.”
Though she said there was an atmosphere of panic in the city, and a sense something was significantly wrong, Mrs Miller said most people were cooperating with police by staying away from the scene.
“The tram conductor was being quite proactive in what she was saying, that there was a critical incident in the CBD,” she said.
“She was very calm in the way she said that.”
“I was just being mindful there were a lot of emergency services on the scene, so just to keep clear… to stay away from it and just get towards the train station, which is where I needed to be.”
A young woman who had been sitting next to her had been checking her phone for news and had advised a car had ploughed into pedestrians in the CBD.
“Last night I felt really shaken up because I knew there was a pram on the front of the car,” Mrs Miller said.
“Just seeing that image on the news and social media was really hard to deal with… given I have young children myself.”
“Waking up this morning to find another person has since passed… I just think it’s horrific.”
If she had caught the tram 10 minutes earlier, she would likely have been at the scene herself.
Mrs Miller is grateful that she wasn’t there.
“I’m very lucky that I didn’t,” she said.
UPDATE, SATURDAY 11.16am: Of the 11 patients at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, three are in a critical condition, two are in a serious condition, and four are stable.
Two patients have been discharged since yesterday, the hospital said in a written statement.
Tram services have resumed, though Yarra Trams warned earlier this morning of possible delays as the timetable was restored.
UPDATE, SATURDAY 10.42am: Authorities have grave fears for “two or three” of the five victims in hospital with critical conditions, The Age reports.
Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said four had died in the rampage and 30 were in hospitals with injuries.
He also said the death toll might rise, given the fears held for those with critical conditions.
A three-month-old baby girl who was taken to the Royal Childrens Hospital by police officers. She is fighting for her life in a critical condition.
There is also a toddler in serious condition at the hospital and a nine-year-old is in a stable condition.
On Friday night there were five people still at Royal Children Hospital.
The Age reported a 23-year-old woman who had a limb injury and a 13 year old who had been in a stable condition had probably been released, given the update.
Police have confirmed a 10-year-old girl was one of the four people killed when a speeding car ploughed through pedestrians on Friday.
The Australian Jewish News is reporting that the girl was from Beth Rivkah College in St Kilda East.
Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said that the driver, under police guard in hospital, is undergoing surgery for gunshot wounds.
He said he was confident that police acted in the interests of community safety during the pursuit of the driver on Friday.
He also told the press conference police opposed the bail of the car’s alleged driver, Dimitrious ‘Jimmy’ Gargasoulas.
Chief Commissioner Ashton said the alleged driver was charged over family violence related offences on January 14 and bailed on the 20th.
Premier Daniel Andrews said "hearts are heavy" today but added that there was a "real anger" among Melburnians about what happened.
"I share that anger and frustration," he said.
He said a proper review and investigation into the rampage would be undertaken.
"We owe that to every single victim," he said.
He said Melburnians needed to come together to show support to victims and their families.
The Australian Psychological Society has released tips psychologists think might be helpful for adults, young people and children coping with the Bourke Street attack.
They think it would be good to:
- Talk about what happened, your story and your emotions
- Ask for support from people who care about you
- Stick with familiar routines
- Take a break from the media stories about the events
- Take care of yourself – rest, familiar routines, healthy eating
UPDATE, SATURDAY 9.28am: Police are hoping to interview the alleged driver of a car that ploughed into pedestrians at Bourke Street.
A man identified as Dimitrious 'Jimmy' Gargasoulas is alleged to have driven the car and is in hospital under police guard, The Age reports.
"We were certainly hoping that we could interview the male today," Victoria's Deputy Police Commissioner, Andrew Crisp, told Nine News Melbourne.
"As you have been previously advised he did receive a gun shot wound to the arm, certainly not life threatening, and we are hoping to interview and charge today."
Four people have died, including a 10-year-old girl, a 25-year-old man and a 32-year-old woman.
Mr Crisp said a 33-year-old man died later in hospital.
"Words really can't explain how horrific this particular situation has been for victims, for families, for police and other emergency services and the broader community," he told Nine News Melbourne.
Three patients at St Vincents were witnesses who were taken there in shock on Friday. They have since been discharged.
Five patients remain at St Vincents, all in a stable condition.
A spokeswoman for the Royal Melbourne Hospital said they were caring for 11 victims of the rampage.
Two people have been discharged and sent home, a spokeswoman said.
Three people are in critical condition condition. Two people are in a serious condition and four patients are in a stable condition.
Parts of the CBD were still closed to traffic at 8.25am, with The Age reporting a strong police presence in Bourke Street.
People had started leaving flowers.
By 9am, workers, shoppers and tourists had started returning to Bourke Street mall.
Michael Kelso, who works at AMART sports near the corner of Elizabeth and Bourke Street, returned to start another day at the store.
Mr Kelso said he had just missed getting hit by the car.
"I finished work at 1.30pm and started walking towards Bourke Street, I heard people screaming, running and the car driving down the footpath," he said. "Twenty second past and I could have been hit."
He was not afraid to return to work on Saturday.
"It feels a bit eerie, but life goes on," Mr Kelso said.
"It was a freak incident, I don't hold any fears being on Bourke Street. But I definitely understand why people would want to avoid it for a while. "
Bourke Street appeared to have been reopened completely by 9.31am, according to The Age.
All tape had been removed but trams were yet to start running.
UPDATE, FRIDAY 10.30pm: Six people are in hospital with life-threatening injuries after being run down by a car in Bourke Street, The Age reports.
Twenty-three others are also being treated in hospital, some with shock after witnessing the the incident.
For more updates throughout the night, please visit The Age’s live coverage.
UPDATE FRIDAY 9.25pm: The death toll from the Bourke Street incident has now risen to four.
Police are not releasing the age or sex of the most recent victim until next of kin has been notified.
A man in his 30s, a woman in her 30s and a young child were also killed.
These three people were knocked down at different points along Bourke Street and were not connected.
UPDATE FRIDAY 8pm: The man who allegedly mowed down pedestrians in Bourke Street earlier today has been identified as 26-year-old James “Jimmy” Gargasoulas, The Age reports.
He lived in public housing flats in Windsor, where he allegedly stabbed his brother, Angelo, in the early hours of Friday morning.
A relative said Jimmy has had a drug problem and has been in and out of jail for car theft and drug offences.
Three people were killed and 20 people were injured in the incident earlier today.
We had previously reported the number of injured as 15, based on comments chief commissioner Graham Ashton made at a press conference.
However, police inform us that the number injured was actually 20.
UPDATE FRIDAY 7.10pm: Here are the key facts on the Bourke Street incident, as reported by The Age:
- A man driving a maroon car knocked down a number of pedestrians on Bourke Street, killing three people and injuring 15.
- The three people killed were a man in his 30s, a woman in her 30s and a young child.
- Five people have been taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries, including a three-month-old baby girl.
- A total of 25 people have been hospitalised: 15 were pedestrians and 10 appear to have been admitted after witnessing the incident.
- The driver of the car has been arrested.
- The incident was not terror-related.
- Police are advising Melburnians to avoid the following area while they conduct their investigation into the incident.
- The driver of the car is accused of stabbing his brother in Windsor on Friday morning.
- Before running down pedestrians on Bourke Street, he allegedly took a woman hostage. She later escaped on Bolte Bridge and he drove into the city, and was filmed doing doughnuts at the Swanston/Flinders Street intersection.
- The man has a history of family violence, mental health and drug problems.
UPDATE FRIDAY 5.35pm: Five people, including an infant, remain in a critical condition after being hit by a car in the Melbourne CBD.
Addressing the media, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham said another 10 people had also been injured in the incident, which killed three people: a man and woman, both in their 30s, and a child.
Mr Ashton said it was believed the deceased were not related.
He said the arrested man, a 26-year-old, had come to police attention in the past and had an extensive history of family violence.
Premier Daniel Andrews also addressed the media.
“Our emergency services this afternoon have done us proud,” Mr Andrews said.
He also thanked everyone who supported and helped those affected by the incident.
Anyone concerned about the well-being of a loved one can call 1800 727 077.
Those in need of support can call the Victims Helpline 1800 819 817.
Anyone who witnessed the incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
UPDATE FRIDAY 5pm: Police have confirmed a young child was one of the three people killed after being hit by a car in Melbourne’s CBD earlier today.
Police shot the male driver, the sole occupant of the vehicle, and he was taken into custody.
He is being treated for non-life threatening injuries.
It is also alleged the man took a woman, who was known to him, hostage in his car.
She escaped from the car on the Bolte Bridge earlier today.
UPDATE FRIDAY 3.45pm: The man who has been arrested over the wild car chase through the CBD was wanted over a stabbing in St Kilda on Thursday and is currently the subject of multiple bail orders, The Age is reporting.
Police sources say officers called off pursuit of the man before his car entered the CBD around 1.30pm, fearing it was too dangerous to ram the vehicle.
The suspect is wanted over a stabbing that left a man in his 20s, believed to be the suspect's brother, in a critical condition in Melbourne's south in the early hours of Friday.
Police were called to an address on Raleigh Street, Windsor, shortly after 2am after reports of two men fighting.
A Victoria Police spokesman said the men had left the scene by the time police arrived.
"A man in his 20s presented to a nearby hospital with stab wounds," he said.
After police called off the pursuit of the maroon-coloured car, was later seen doing "burnouts" in the middle of the intersection outside Flinders Street Station, then speeding north towards Bourke Street Mall.
Witness Rebecca Russo told Fairfax Media she saw three people hit by the car as it sped through the mall with police in pursuit.
"We were just standing on Bourke Street, and we heard a bit of a crash coming from the mall. I saw a maroon car driving up the pedestrian path on the Flinders Street side.
"People were running out of the way, they were going very, very fast. I saw him hit a few people. I saw bodies flying into the air."
The vehicle then crossed over Elizabeth Street, heading west along Bourke Street near the corner of William Street when other witnesses reported hearing gunshots.
Shortly afterwards, armed police surrounded the maroon car and dragged a single occupant from the vehicle.
He was restrained and stripped down to his underwear, according to video and photos posted by observers in nearby buildings.
The vehicle is heavily damaged, with the hood crumpled in and a smashed windscreen.
UPDATE FRIDAY 3.30pm: Three people are now dead and 20 injured, police have said during a press conference this afternoon. It is not terror-related.
"A male deliberately drove into pedestrians in Bourke Street Mall. We have three deceased and 20 injured.
"We believe this is connected to an earlier stabbing in the southern metro region. We have the offender in custody. I can also confirm this is not a CT related incident. There is no ongoing threat to the public," police said.
Police are advising people to stay out of the CBD.
There are photos of an upturned pram and reports a child was injured. Some hospitals have gone into code brown, which denotes an external emergency.
The Royal Children's Hospital is looking after four patients from the incident. They are asking people who have children with non-urgent conditions to avoid heading to the emergency department right now.
UPDATE FRIDAY 2.50pm: Police will address the media at 3pm. We’ll bring you the latest updates as soon as we can.
More from The Age:
Maria Kitjapanon says she saw the maroon car come up Bourke Street Mall, before it was rammed by a police car. Police officers then fired into the car, she said, before pulling out a man.
Ms Kitjapanon said she saw a young child being hit by the maroon car.
"I was walking up Bourke Street, I'd come up from Southern Cross. I was nearly at the intersection, and I saw the car – which was incredibly battered even by that stage - it was coming straight towards me on the footpath. It took me a couple of seconds to compute – so I stepped aside onto the road.
"As I was stepping off another police car came about and rammed into the maroon car to make it stop. There were probably 10 police surrounding that guy’s car, with guns drawn, and they fired into the car.
"Then they dragged someone out via the passenger’s side, then all 10 of them sat on top of him.
"There'd been a baby in a pram who'd been hit, and that baby was just on the footpath there with a couple of people trying to assist."
EARLIER: At least one person is dead and many more seriously injured after shots were reportedly fired and pedestrians run down during a police chase in the middle of Melbourne's CBD.
Victoria Police has released a statement, reading:
“A man has been arrested following an incident in the CBD this afternoon.
“At this early stage it is believed a man driving a vehicle has struck a number of pedestrians in the vicinity of Bourke and Queens Streets just before 2pm.
“Emergency services are assisting multiple patients but at least one person has been confirmed deceased.
“Pedestrian access has been closed on Bourke Street between William and Swanston Streets.
“The exact circumstances surrounding the incident are yet to be determined and we will provide further information when it comes to hand.
“Police request that people avoid the area.
“The situation is now contained.”
Ambulance Victoria has also released a statement saying paramedics are assessing 20 people, some of whom have serious injuries.
The assailant was driving on the footpath through Bourke Street Mall, witnesses said, as far as Myer, The Age is reporting.
One woman, who did not want to be named, said she was having lunch at a cafe, when she heard five gunshots. She said there was an announcement that they'd gone into lockdown and everyone started running.
She said police told her he was shooting at people and trying to run them over.
Rebecca Russo told Fairfax she saw three people get hit by a maroon car as it came speeding up the pedestrian-only stretch of Bourke Street Mall.
"We were just standing on Bourke Street, and we heard a bit of a crash coming from the Mall. I saw a maroon car driving up the pedestrian path on the Flinders Street side.
"People were running out of the way, they were going very very fast. I saw him hit a few people. I saw bodies flying into the air."
Ms Russo said police continued to pursue him up Bourke Street towards Southern Cross.
More to come.