A man shot dead by police in regional Victoria was attacking his sister when officers arrived, authorities say.
Warning: This story contains graphic details that may distress some audience members.
Victoria police said two officers went to an address on the Warburton Highway in Yarra Junction, north-east of Melbourne, about 5:30pm on Wednesday after receiving reports a man was assaulting a woman.
When they arrived, the officers heard screaming and entered a bedroom to find a 45-year-old man strangling his 48-year-old sister, Assistant Commissioner for the eastern region Russell Barrett said.
A forensics team gathered evidence at the crime scene in Yarra Junction on Wednesday evening. (ABC News)
Assistant Commissioner Barrett said the incident was “dynamic” and that officers’ actions had been “brave and courageous”.
He said he attended the scene on Wednesday night and had watched the body worn cameras of the officers who attended the scene.
Assistant Commissioner Barrett said the officers had been advised on their way to the scene that the brother had a history of mental health conditions and possessed a samurai sword.
When they arrived they found the one of the woman’s limbs had been partially severed and she was unconscious, he said.
Assistant Commissioner Barrett said the man was strangling his sister and the police officers called on him to stop.
The man didn’t stop so the officers tasered him three times, but when that didn’t make him stop, so one officer fired multiple shots with a firearm,” he said.
“Our members then rendered first aid to the female whilst they awaited the ambulance’s arrival,” Assistant Commissioner Barrett said.
Paramedics were unable to revive the man and he died at the scene.
“This is an incredibly traumatic situation,”
the assistant commissioner said.
“Our hearts go out to the family. You can imagine what the mother’s going through at this moment.”
He said the mother was in a distressed state and was also taken to hospital after the incident.
The younger woman was taken by air ambulance to the Royal Melbourne Hospital which has confirmed she is in a critical condition.
State Coroner John Cain visited the crime scene in Yarra Junction. (ABC News)
Homicide Squad and forensics teams remain at the scene and the incident is being investigated by Professional Standards Command as is standard procedure for a fatal police shooting.
State Coroner John Cain attended the crime scene on Wednesday night and will prepare a report.
