Overview
- Imam Ismet Purdic and his wife were forced off the South Gippsland Highway into a service station in Dandenong South, where anti-Muslim abuse was hurled, their car was damaged and the imam was punched.
- Victoria Police arrested three people; a 23-year-old man was remanded to face Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on Monday and a 22-year-old man was bailed to appear in May, both charged with criminal damage and common law assault.
- An 18-year-old woman was released pending summons as the investigation continues into the alleged racially motivated attack and reported stabbing threats.
- Police said passers-by intervened before the suspects fled; the imam later sought medical treatment, said he and his wife were shaken but okay, and publicly thanked officers who assisted.
- Religious bodies and officials condemned the incident, with ANIC describing alleged white-supremacist language and warning of rising Islamophobia, while Victoria’s multicultural minister and the premier reiterated zero tolerance for hate-fuelled violence.