The Victoria Police said in a statement that the incident occurred in Melbourne's Prahran district. According to the police, four people were transported to a hospital, two of whom in critical condition. The Police confirmed later on Sunday that one man has died.
"A 37-year-old man from Narre Warren South suffered life-threatening injuries during the incident however has since died in hospital […] A 28-year-old man remains in a critical condition. A 50-year-old man and a 29-year-old man have both sustained non-life threatening injuries", the police said in a statement.
According to the authorities, there is no evidence to suggest the crime is terror-related.
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Police and emergency services are currently responding to a shooting which occurred in Prahran on Sunday morning.
— Victoria Police (@VictoriaPolice) 14 апреля 2019 г.
Police are urging people to avoid the area and that anyone with information or footage of the incident to contact Crime Stoppers.
🗒https://t.co/PR6tiL1NGv pic.twitter.com/MOTMmgvxot
According to the police, the shooting occurred outside the venue, near Little Chapel Street and Malvern Road in Prahran, at about 3.20 am local time. The local police are also reportedly investigating whether a black Porsche SUV seen leaving the area is related to the shooting. The car was later found burnt out.
The shooting incident could have reportedly had a homophobic nature as in the area, where it has happened, many LGBTQ+ bars and nightclubs are located. According to local media, the incident occurred outside the two-story Love Machine club.
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Love Machine host Steve Yousif said, cited by AP, that he is "overwhelmed with all your calls and texts, nothing but love for you all", adding that "what happened last night was uncalled for and devastating. For some of you it was a night out, the rest of the Love Machine family lost a beautiful soul today".
Mass shootings are rare in Australia, where strict gun laws were introduced after 35 people were killed in 1996 at Port Arthur in Tasmania.
According to AFP, a 2018 murder-suicide left seven members of a family dead in Western Australia, the country's worst mass shooting since the Port Arthur massacre.
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