Part of East Street was cordoned off with police tape for two days in October. Photo: Albert McKnight.
Police have given their first major update on an alleged stabbing in a small South Coast town.
At about 2 am on 6 October, emergency services were called to East Street in Bega, on the NSW Far South Coast.
Officers attached to the South Coast Police District attended and found the body of a 43-year-old man in a park.
The following day, Chief Inspector Shane Jessep confirmed one man had been found dead with stab wounds, but pushed back on reports that a chainsaw was involved.
Another man, said to be 45 years old, was also taken to South East Regional Hospital in a stable condition.
Strike Force Nakstone was created to investigate.
On Friday (14 November), Commander of South Coast Police District Superintendent Darren Brand said it was still too early to determine a motive.
“There’s no information available at this stage that it’s gang-related, but I can confirm that the groups of people involved in this event were known to each other, and they are also known to police,” he said.
He also said the 45-year-old had since been released from hospital.
He called for anyone with information about a “small double-edged dagger” to come forward.
Police believe it was “involved in the commission” of the alleged stabbing and was potentially discarded shortly afterwards.
On Wednesday (12 November), officers from the South Coast Police District and NSW SES volunteers searched in and around the Glebe Wetlands for the knife.
No arrests were made following this search.
That search followed other police operations, including a search warrant at a Bega property during the evening of 30 October.
Superintendent Brand said no one was home at the time, and officers seized a knife and electronic devices.
About a week later, on 5 November, South Coast Police District investigators conducted an operation on East Street in Bega.
At the time, they did not provide further details on their investigation.
However, Superintendent Brand has confirmed online claims that officers were recreating the alleged incident, describing it as an investigative tool.
“[Those] homicide investigations are very thorough and complicated at times, and that’s a strategy used by investigators from time to time.
“It’ll assist them with gathering information to ensure that the lines of inquiry they’re following are on point, but also what it might do is provide information for members of the public and jog their memory.”
He also said two cars seized in the aftermath of the alleged stabbing were still undergoing forensic testing.
Superintendent Brand reassured the community that there was no evidence of wider concerns around their safety.
“It’s true, there has been a house fire in the vicinity of where the [alleged] homicide occurred, and we certainly haven’t ruled that out as being related.
“But at this stage, there’s nothing to suggest that the wider or broader community is at any risk.”
Anyone with information can contact Bega Police Station on (02) 6492 9999 or call Crime Stoppers by calling 1800 333 000 or visiting Crime Stoppers’ website.
If this story has raised any issues for you, you can call Lifeline’s 24-hour crisis support line on 13 11 14. In an emergency, call triple zero.
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