Protesters Injured by Controversial 'Less Lethal' Police Munitions in Melbourne

On October 19th, 2025, a protest in Melbourne turned violent when police deployed controversial 'less lethal' munitions, including rubber pellet grenades, against the crowd. Eyewitness accounts and footage show that a protester known as 'Scout' was struck by one of these grenades, suffering burns and bruises.

The incident occurred when a police officer from the Public Order Response Team lobbed a stinger grenade towards the protesters. The grenade exploded near Scout, who described the experience as being "like in the movies when a bomb goes off in a war zone." Scout sustained burns on their leg, arm, and wrist, requiring hospital treatment.

Police have defended the use of these 'less lethal' weapons, claiming protesters were being violent and throwing objects at officers. However, the footage shows no such aggression from Scout or other nearby protesters at the time of the incident. In fact, the police's own guidelines state that officers should provide medical attention to anyone injured by these munitions, which did not happen in this case.

Experts have criticized the use of stinger grenades, stating that the random pattern of the rubber projectiles makes them inherently dangerous and that there are calls for them to be banned. The incident has sparked outrage and is now the subject of potential legal action against the police.