Notorious postcode gang investigated over stabbing death of Sydney teen

A teenager was allegedly asked if he was a member of a notorious street gang before he was ambushed by a group of masked attackers armed with knives and stabbed to death. Police are exploring whether the violent incident is part of a flare-up in Sydney’s “postcode wars”.

Zac McRae and Vimlesh Chand, both 19, were set upon by four masked assailants at the Mount Druitt bus and train interchange about 10pm on Wednesday. Shortly after, three ambulance crews arrived to find McRae and Chand with multiple stab wounds.

McRae died after being stabbed in the chest, while Chand was taken to Westmead Hospital in a serious but stable condition after receiving treatment from paramedics for stab wounds to his chest and arm. A third person with them was assaulted, but not seriously injured.

Mount Druitt police area commander Darrin Batchelor said Chand was stabbed through the “entirety of his arm” before the knife penetrated his chest. Doctors reported he was “extremely lucky” to survive the “violent, frenzied attack”, Batchelor said.

One of the attackers is alleged to have asked McRae, “Are you 67?” referring to the so-called 67 gang linked to the suburb of Doonside, which has the postcode 2767. The attackers fled and are yet to be arrested.

While police are yet to establish which, if any, gangs the victims or attackers are linked to, they are investigating tensions between 67 and RFA (Ready For Anything), a rival gang from Mount Druitt.

A police source with knowledge of the investigation told the Herald that detectives were investigating the victims’ possible links to local street gangs and whether any associations were the motivation for the attack.

Police believe the victims were ambushed by a group of attackers, who were wearing face coverings and dark clothing. Investigators have been told that one of the masked assailants asked the victims what gang they were affiliated with before the attack.

Police believe the offenders ran across the train lines near the interchange following the attack, and closed the tracks on Thursday morning for further investigations.

McRae was known to police for violent offending and was on bail at the time of his death for several offences, including assault occasioning actual bodily harm in company and demanding property in company.

Several gangs in and around the Mount Druitt area have long been linked to Sydney’s so-called “postcode wars”, involving rival teenagers from neighbouring suburbs.

Strike Force Coberta has been formed to investigate, and a report will be prepared for the coroner.

Much of the bus interchange was blocked by police tape on Thursday morning, with evidence markers, police vehicles and emergency tents occupying the area, as forensic officers were deployed to the scene.

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