‘British tourist’ stabbed in back after getting into argument with Australian teenager, police say

Victim suffers stab wounds to back and wrist in ‘horrible’ attack

Representational image of a policeman stopping a car at a checkpoint on the Queensland and New South Wales border on Griffith Street in Gold Coast in Australia in 2020 (EPA)

A 25-year-old British backpacker was stabbed in the back after getting into a late-night row with a teenager in Australia, according to police and local media reports.

The incident occurred at a bus stop on Hastings Street in Noosa, on the Queensland coast, just before 4am on Sunday.

The victim suffered stab wounds to his back and wrist, police said in a statement, alleging that the attacker was a 15-year-old boy who was restrained by locals and arrested soon after the assault.

“Police will allege a verbal argument between a 15-year-old male and a 25-year-old man escalated just before 4am, before the youth left and returned with a bottle and a knife and a physical altercation resulted in the 25-year-old being stabbed in the back and wrist,” the statement said.

The teenager has now been charged with assault occasioning bodily harm.

ABC News identified the teenager as a Sunshine Coast local and the tourist as a British backpacker. Neither the teen’s identity nor the identity or nationality of the tourist were confirmed by Queensland police.

According to ABC News, the severely injured victim was transported to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.

“Investigators urge anyone with information or relevant vision to contact police. Investigations are continuing,” the police statement said.

ABC News quoted a Noosa resident as describing the attack. She said it left her “quite shaken up” as the area it occurred in was “definitely safe”.

Mandy Lopez said the attack was “horrible... pretty scary news to hear”.

“This is a healthy space. It’s definitely a safe area,” Ms Lopez said. “But hearing this news, I feel quite shaken up.”

“The Sunshine Coast is a very safe location... These sorts of events are rare,” chief inspector Jason Overland told the media.