Laa Chol
The death of a South Sudanese teenager in Melbourne's CBD was a"tragic and needless"loss of young life,but indicative of a"major law and order problem"in Victoria,Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has said.
As police searched for the killer of 19-year-old Laa Chol on Sunday,Mr Dutton linked the death to what he claimed were wider problems with crime in Victoria.
"This is a tragic and needless loss of a young life,"he said in a statement to Fairfax Media.
"There is a major law and order problem in Victoria and more people are going to be hurt until the rule of law is enforced by the Victorian Government.
"We don’t have these problems with Sudanese gangs in NSW or Queensland."
Mr Dutton's comments come days after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull renewed the debate over crime among African-Australian youths.
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.Credit:Fairfax Media
Mr Turnbull said on July 17 there was"real concern about Sudanese gangs"in Melbourne,repeating Mr Dutton's claims from January that residents were scared to go out to dinner due to street crime.
His comments drew angry rebukes from Victoria's African leaders,who accused Mr Turnbull of using the state's South Sudanese diaspora as a"political football".