POLICE are searching for three men believed to be involved in the Oakleigh riot in which a crazed mob trashed a Bob Jane T-Mart store and bashed a Fairfax photographer.
Images of the three men were released – one wearing a white hoodie and smirking, another grinning with his hands in the air and the third staring at the camera.
Police were tight-lipped about their investigation, only saying the trio was suspected of being involved in the March riot – which began in protest over the cancellation of an Easternats drag race meeting – and they would like to speak to them.
Police have made 17 arrests over the riot. Fifteen people have been charged and a 16th person has been released pending summons. A 17th was released without charge, a police spokeswoman said.
The mob gathered on the evening of March 19 to protest the cancellation of the Easternats event, sponsored by Bob Jane.
It soon got out of control, with several thugs smashing the shop's windows while the crowd cheered them on. When the window started shattering, the crowd began retreating.
It was then that Fairfax Community Network photographer Wayne Hawkins, who was covering the riot, felt a stinging blow to the side of head.
As he lay on the ground getting kicked and punched, he thought he was going to die. "If it wasn't for the sirens and the police, they would have finished me off."
- Jared Lynch/The Age
Information to Crime Stoppers on 1800333000
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