Husband suspected in horror stabbing of woman six-year-old girl

Tributes are flowing for a mother who died in a stabbing overnight along with her six-year-old daughter, after the woman fled to a neighbour's house for help while her alleged attacker pursued her.

Friends gathered outside the Mill Park home on Friday remembered 39-year-old dental nurse Poonam Sharma as a "good mum" to her daughters Vanessa, 6, and Angela, 10.

Prabhal (Raj) Sharma and Poonam Sharma with daughters Vanessa (left) and Angela, 10, and an unknown woman.

Neighbours reported seeing a woman covered in blood, crying and calling for help on Thursday night. Others say they heard a loud scream in the street before ambulances arrived. Police said the woman's 10-year-old daughter was able to escape the scene.

Homicide Squad Detective Inspector Dean Thomas said a neighbour called emergency services to the home on Kellaway Crescent in Mill Park at 7.50 on Thursday night.

Police found a 39-year-old woman who had died, a critically injured six-year-old girl and a 40-year-old man.

"They engaged with that male and as a result, that male proceeded to injure himself and police had to take affirmative action and take him into custody," Detective Inspector Thomas said.

Poonam Sharma.

He said the relationship between the victims and attacker was still not confirmed, but police believed the man and woman were married and were parents of the children involved.

The woman's husband is Prabhal (Raj) Sharma.

A person close to the family told The Age that Mrs Sharma was a "good mum who had done everything for her kids".

Another family friend said the two young girls, Angela and Vanessa, had loved walking to a nearby park together to play, and both loved eating ice cream.

Mourners lay flowers outside the house on Friday.Credit:Jason South

The girl was taken to hospital in a critical condition where she later died.

Detective Inspector Thomas said initial investigations suggested the woman was chased by her attacker. Photos from the scene show blood on a neighbour's door.

"We believe at this point ... that the 39-year-old victim has run from her address to the neighbour's seeking help," he said. "We believe that's why there's blood there and of course, she's been pursued by the offender."

Detective Inspector Thomas said the 10-year-old who fled the scene was going through an "absolutely terrible, traumatic incident".

"She's been through a terrible, terrible incident so we want to make sure she's as good as you can be."

The man was taken to hospital and remains there under police guard. Detective Inspector Thomas said he would be interviewed when medical clearance was given.

Forensic crime scene investigators arrived at the Mill Park scene on Friday morning.

The brick house remained behind police tape around midday, with a significant police presence still on the street.

The scene outside a Mill Park home where a woman and a six-year-old girl died.Credit:Jason South

Neighbour Abdul Husseini said he was at a nearby park when his wife alerted him to what was unfolding outside their home - with Mrs Sharma screaming and trying to get assistance with one of her young daughters.

"They were crying and calling for someone to help - there was no one on the street. The woman came out covered in blood," he said. "My wife is a bit scared now after seeing everything."

Other neighbours reported hearing a loud scream in the street before ambulances arrived.

Mill Park woman Jessie, who declined to give her surname but said she lives around the corner from the home, visited the scene on Friday morning to lay flowers and a soft toy in memory of the two victims.

When she heard sirens on Thursday night and the street was cordoned off swiftly by police, it was clear "something really big" had happened at the home.

After living in the suburb for more than 30 years, Jessie said the area had always felt very safe but incident had left her "shocked, it is really saddening".

"I think it's important to remember the ones that were taken too early, especially a little girl," she said.

"It's a quiet street where everyone is just more than happy to help out. It's really sad. They are difficult times as they are and this just kind of makes it worse."

A woman and a child died in the stabbing at Mill Park.Credit:Nine News

Women's Safety Minister Anne Ruston said the death of a woman and young girl in Melbourne was devastating, on the day she announced details of a new federal commission that will be set up to combat domestic violence.

"This is an absolutely devastating incident. My thoughts are with the young girl who has tragically lost her mum and little sister as well as the family and friends of this Melbourne family," Senator Ruston said.

"As a country, we cannot continue to read these headlines, we must act. We must all work together to prevent and intervene when we see violence as well as address the systemic issues within our society that drive gendered violence."

The federal government's new draft plan steps up the ambition to end - rather than just reduce - violence, and acts on calls at a summit in September for more certainty over funding.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or with footage or further information can contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au

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Mathew Dunckley is digital editor at The Age. Based in our Melbourne newsroom, he was previously business editor for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age and Melbourne bureau chief for the Australian Financial Review.Connect via Twitter, Facebook or email.

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