Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
A 10-year-old boy in Melbourne for cancer treatment was punched and his mum stabbed outside police HQ. The attacker’s take in court? “At least they’re both still breathing, so I kept my humanity intact.” No attempted murder charge either. “Most liveable city”?
Former Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan is gone, and her former deputy Ben Carroll is now sitting in the top job. Yet, violent crime continues to plague Victorian streets.
I guess we can’t expect him to single-handedly clean up the state’s crime overnight, but you would at least expect the area directly outside police command to be safe.
The most recent flagrant display of violence occurred directly outside Victoria Police headquarters, of all places, at about 1pm on Tuesday.
Police allege that this man, 27-year-old Jerry Sowood, punched a 10-year-old boy in the head, and then when his mother attempted to intervene, he put her in a headlock and repeatedly stabbed her with a pair of scissors.
She is incredibly lucky to be alive. Thankfully, a group of brave passersby stepped in and subdued the man before he could escape or inflict more carnage.
Sowood has since been charged with affray, intentionally causing injury, two counts of unlawful assault, conduct endangering life, and conduct endangering serious injury.
Yet, for some reason, attempted murder is nowhere on that charge sheet. Because, as we all know, plunging a pair of scissors repeatedly into someone’s body isn’t that lethal, right? I mean, preschoolers are allowed to use scissors. Clearly the man’s intent wasn’t to murder—he was obviously just on his way to an arts and crafts class, noticed a loose thread on her jacket, and offered an overly enthusiastic tailoring service.
The poor boy wasn’t just brutally attacked. It turns out—as reported by the ABC under the headline, “Boy punched in Melbourne CBD was visiting for cancer treatment, uncle says”—he was visiting Melbourne from Phillip Island with his mum to undergo routine brain cancer scans following his 2023 diagnosis. As if that wasn’t already enough for the poor lad to deal with, he got punched in the head by a total stranger and had to watch his mother get repeatedly stabbed.
To be absolutely fair to the perpetrator, I highly doubt he had any idea that the boy was receiving cancer treatment, so we shouldn’t accuse him of targeting a sick child. He’s clearly an equal-opportunity assailant who attacks children regardless of their medical history.
The uncle summed up the sentiment of a lot of Victorians right now: “We’re supposed to be one of the top, most liveable cities on earth—not if you’re scared to go out on the streets, it’s not.” Hard to disagree with that.
Appearing via video link in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court, Sowood appeared to be quite happy with the outcome. He said: “There’s no need to hide it. At least they’re both still breathing, so I kept my humanity intact.” Ah yes—he sucker-punched a sick child, put a mother in a headlock, and stabbed her repeatedly with scissors, but thank goodness Jerry Sowood kept his humanity intact.
MUSIC
Allégro by Emmit Fenn
A 10-year-old boy in Melbourne for cancer treatment was punched and his mum stabbed outside police HQ. The attacker’s take in court? “At least they’re both still breathing, so I kept my humanity intact.” No attempted murder charge either. “Most liveable city”?
Former Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan is gone, and her former deputy Ben Carroll is now sitting in the top job. Yet, violent crime continues to plague Victorian streets.
I guess we can’t expect him to single-handedly clean up the state’s crime overnight, but you would at least expect the area directly outside police command to be safe.
The most recent flagrant display of violence occurred directly outside Victoria Police headquarters, of all places, at about 1pm on Tuesday.
Police allege that this man, 27-year-old Jerry Sowood, punched a 10-year-old boy in the head, and then when his mother attempted to intervene, he put her in a headlock and repeatedly stabbed her with a pair of scissors.
She is incredibly lucky to be alive. Thankfully, a group of brave passersby stepped in and subdued the man before he could escape or inflict more carnage.
Sowood has since been charged with affray, intentionally causing injury, two counts of unlawful assault, conduct endangering life, and conduct endangering serious injury.
Yet, for some reason, attempted murder is nowhere on that charge sheet. Because, as we all know, plunging a pair of scissors repeatedly into someone’s body isn’t that lethal, right? I mean, preschoolers are allowed to use scissors. Clearly the man’s intent wasn’t to murder—he was obviously just on his way to an arts and crafts class, noticed a loose thread on her jacket, and offered an overly enthusiastic tailoring service.
The poor boy wasn’t just brutally attacked. It turns out—as reported by the ABC under the headline, “Boy punched in Melbourne CBD was visiting for cancer treatment, uncle says”—he was visiting Melbourne from Phillip Island with his mum to undergo routine brain cancer scans following his 2023 diagnosis. As if that wasn’t already enough for the poor lad to deal with, he got punched in the head by a total stranger and had to watch his mother get repeatedly stabbed.
To be absolutely fair to the perpetrator, I highly doubt he had any idea that the boy was receiving cancer treatment, so we shouldn’t accuse him of targeting a sick child. He’s clearly an equal-opportunity assailant who attacks children regardless of their medical history.
The uncle summed up the sentiment of a lot of Victorians right now: “We’re supposed to be one of the top, most liveable cities on earth—not if you’re scared to go out on the streets, it’s not.” Hard to disagree with that.
Appearing via video link in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court, Sowood appeared to be quite happy with the outcome. He said: “There’s no need to hide it. At least they’re both still breathing, so I kept my humanity intact.” Ah yes—he sucker-punched a sick child, put a mother in a headlock, and stabbed her repeatedly with scissors, but thank goodness Jerry Sowood kept his humanity intact.
MUSIC
Allégro by Emmit Fenn
