The death of 16-year-old Reservoir boy Declan Cutler has been described as “one of the most vicious and brutal attacks” police officers have seen.
Early Wednesday morning, Victoria Police announced that they had charged a 17-year-old Taylor Hill boy, a 17-year-old Tarneit boy, a 15-year-old Hoppers Crossing boy, a 16-year-old Yarraville, a 14-year-old Meadow Heights boy and a 13-year-old Meadow Heights boy with murder.
A 17-year-old Clifton Hill girl was released pending further investigations
Police say Declan was fatally assaulted and stabbed in Coburg in the early hours of Sunday, March 13th.
Victoria Police Assistant Bob Hill said many experienced police officers had described the attack “as one of the most vicious and brutal attacks they have ever investigated”.
“This was a deeply violent criminal act,” he said.
Hill said he understood Declan’s death had shocked and troubled many people in the community.
“The meaningless nature of this incident should not be lost on anyone – I know it has affected our police,” he said.
“I know many will be horrified by the young age of those arrested today, but let me be clear: we will be relentless in prosecuting anyone responsible for this level of violence, regardless of their age.”
After Declan’s death 10 days ago, police claimed an “incident” happened at a party in Coburg, which hours later led to the teenager’s assault and death.
After the 16-year-old left the party with friends, police said the group was chased by a dark sedan with a number of people inside through the Reservoir.
Declan is believed to have been separated from his friends when he was attacked around 2:30 a.m. on March 13, police said.
Declan was treated by paramedics and police but died on the spot.
The investigation into the incident continues and police are urging anyone who has seen the incident or has other information to report it.
Two other teenagers were arrested for unrelated manners. A 19-year-old man from South Melbourne was charged with burglary and other offenses, while a 15-year-old Werribee boy was released pending further investigations.