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A 13-year-old girl has been charged with nearly running over Jewish families in an antisemitic attack that was allegedly part of massive crime spree across Melbourne.
The teenager was arrested and charged on Tuesday with 52 offences allegedly committed over the past week.
Police said on Wednesday last week the girl was driving a stolen black Hyundai erratically through Hampton, Ripponlea and Caulfield, and that the car’s female occupants allegedly shouted antisemitic remarks and threw eggs at pedestrians.
About 7pm on Saturday, the Hyundai allegedly swerved towards a group of Jewish families in Ripponlea, police said.
“The families were crossing the road at the intersection of Hotham Street and Glen Eira Road and narrowly escaped being struck by the car,” a spokesperson said.
Police allege the 13-year-old from the Bayside area was involved in a number of other incidents in stolen cars in the area.
On Monday evening police were called to reports of a hit-and-run in Brighton, after the teenage occupants of stolen SUV tried to hit a cyclist off his bike using the car’s door. The SUV, allegedly driven by the 13-year-old, then allegedly rammed the bike from behind.
The 45-year-old cyclist was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and the vehicle fled the scene.
Speaking to 3AW on Tuesday afternoon, the cyclist’s sister, Brooke, said the girls had allegedly filmed them tormenting her brother, David, before running him over.
“He’s in shock, he’s traumatised, but all in all, I think for what happened, he is quite well. He’s in a stable condition in The Alfred with a list of injuries, but as the doctor said, he’s pretty lucky to be alive from being hit by the car.
“He’d come home and was going for a ride after work just to stretch his legs. He’d gone for a ride in Brighton, when he said he felt a nudge on his elbow and turned to see a car full of young girls who’d opened their car door on his elbow and were filming it.”
Police also allege a girl, driving a stolen white Volkswagen Golf, allegedly rammed an e-scooter in Elwood just after midnight on Tuesday, causing the two occupants to fall off. One of the victims filmed the Golf, before one of the teenagers allegedly threatened them.
Police spotted the Golf about 20 minutes later and used “stop sticks” to bring the car to a halt. The three female occupants were arrested at the scene.
The 13-year-old girl was charged with 52 offences, including reckless conduct endanger serious injury, multiple counts of theft, multiple counts of theft of motor vehicle, burglary, handling stolen goods, and threatening physical harm or property damage on ground of a protected attribute.
She was remanded to appear at a children’s court. A 16-year-old girl and another 13-year-old girl were also arrested and charged with theft of a motor vehicle and handling stolen goods. Both were bailed.
Victoria Police condemned the antisemitic nature of the Bayside 13-year-old’s alleged crimes.
“There is absolutely no place at all in our society for hate-based behaviour and such activity will not be tolerated,” a spokesperson said.
There were 564 antisemitic incidents reported in Victoria in 2025, the highest number recorded in a single year, the Jewish Community Council of Victoria found in its antisemitism report.
The figures, compiled by Jewish safety organisation Community Security Group, “marked a second year of unprecedented levels of antisemitism ... since Hamas’ terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023”, the report’s authors wrote.
Verbal abuse and graffiti were the two most common types of antisemitic incidents recorded.
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