As two families prepare funerals for their young sons, a community has been left searching for answers to stop the bloodshed.
Chol Achiek, 12, and Dau Akeng, 15, were killed while walking home in Cobblebank in Melbourne's outer northwest late on Saturday after being ambushed by up to eight masked males armed with machetes and other bladed weapons.
Police believe the attacks, which left both youths with horrific injuries, were targeted but are not ruling out a case of mistaken identity because the victims were not gang members.
Some parents have reportedly become so fearful of gang violence they plan to send their kids back to Africa to protect them, while others plead with the government to come down harder on youth crime.
Victoria is being pushed to follow Queensland and NSW by introducing Jack's Law, named after teen Jack Beasley who was fatally stabbed in Surfers Paradise in 2019.
The laws allow police to use wands to search for weapons in public places to combat knife crime.
Fronting the media for the first time since the weekend killings, Premier Jacinta Allan expressed her heartbreak for the families of the slain boys.
"There is clearly more that needs to be done and that is what we will do," she told reporters on Tuesday.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush spoke to her cabinet in the previous week about boosting crime prevention, an area of focus during his time as head of the New Zealand force.
The police chief has separately backed Detective Inspector Graham Banks' demand for tougher penalties for youth crime following Sunday's killings.
A leaked email from Mr Bush to Victoria Police staff said it was what "many of us think" and the officer had his "full support".
Ms Allan did not commit to any specific measures, although she said she would take further advice on Jack's Law.
The premier pointed out the state's existing machete ban was accompanied by greater powers for police to search for weapons in designated areas, as well as two lots of changes to strengthen bail laws.
Opposition Leader Brad Battin has been speaking to Jack's father Brett Beasley for months, with the coalition considering adopting his suggestions.
Berhan Ahmed, from Melbourne-based non-profit Africause, said parents were already sending their kids overseas to escape the violence.
"The families are in a desperate situation," he told Nine's Today program.
"The only safe place for them is to take them out of the country where he will be alive and safe from gang crime."
Chol's mother Ayen Lual has since started a Go Fund Me page to help the family cover the costs of his funeral.
"We want to give Chol a dignified and respectful service but the financial burden of a funeral for such a young child is not something me and my family expected and we are not in a position where we can shoulder this on our own," Ms Lual said on the fundraising website.
Almost $27,000 had been raised by early Tuesday afternoon.
The hunt continues for the perpetrators, who authorities say could have gang links.
Victorian youths committed a record number of crimes in the year to March, jumping 18 per cent to the highest level since records began in 1993.
The older victim's father Elbino Akueng visited the scene on Sunday, describing his son as "a basketball player, not a criminal".
Chol is believed to be the youngest casualty of a youth gang crisis in Melbourne that has claimed the lives of at least 20 other people.
A state ban on machetes came into effect on September 1, with special bins installed at police stations to allow people to dispose of the weapons.
