UPDATE: The family of a Cessnock man who allegedly stabbed himself to death believe he did not take his own life.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The family said the man sought help before he died on Friday night and they want further investigations into the incident.
EARLIER NEWS:
The devastating effects of the drug ice have hit home in the Hunter after a 26-year-old man allegedly stabbed himself to death at Cessnock.
Police said the man was in a drug-induced psychosis when he stabbed himself multiple times in the upper body just before 7.30pm on Friday.
The wounded man collapsed in public view, at the corner of Government Road and Pangari Drive, before police and paramedics arrived.
He died at the scene while paramedics were treating him.
The incident has left even seasoned emergency service workers shocked at the impacts of the highly addictive drug.
It comes amid calls for nation-wide action to stamp out the availability of the drug, also known as crystal methamphetamine, which has become prevalent in many cities, regional centres and rural towns across Australia.
Cessnock residents, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Mercury that the injured man had walked to the corner from a nearby part of the town known to many as Sin City on Friday night.
Neighbours became aware of the incident when emergency crews arrived.
One resident said a trail of blood stretched from the corner, where the victim collapsed, back into the public housing estate.
He said the man was still alive when paramedics arrived, but died at the scene.
Police canvassed the surrounding area and spoke with residents as part of their investigations.
There will be no further investigations into the incident, which came days after Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced the formation of a National Ice Taskforce as part of a renewed effort to remove the drug from the streets.
The taskforce, to be headed by Victorian police commissioner Ken Lay, will devise a strategy to fight the drug’s rising use and availability.
“I am determined that we take every possible step to combat the dreadful scourge of ice,” Mr Abbott said on Twitter.
Central Hunter crime manager Detective Inspector John Zdrilic was unavailable for comment yesterday.
But he told the Mercury last week that ice was
becoming the drug of choice for many people.
Inspector Zdrilic also confirmed that ice was being produced in the Hunter and described the consumption of the drug as a lethal game of roulette.
