Police are searching for a machete-wielding offender who allegedly stabbed a teenager outside a popular Melbourne gelato shop.
Police said the attack took place during an altercation between a group of males just before 7.30pm yesterday on the Lygon Street dining strip in Carlton.
The 17-year-old was found with stab wounds to his neck in front of Pidapipo Gelateria, with blood sprayed across the walls by the outdoor seating.
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He remains in the Royal Melbourne Hospital in a serious but stable condition.
CCTV from across the road shows a group of young men running down the street following the attack, one armed with a machete.
Sarah, a witness, saw it all unfold and said it was extremely distressing.
"I just kept saying "hold your throat, hold your throat, it's going to be okay, stay calm, stay calm," she said.
"(He) was definitely (stabbed) in the jugular because his throat came out like a golf ball or a tennis ball, it was pretty bad."
"This was the scariest, most horrific thing I have ever seen."
The inside of the store was sprayed with blood.
Police today set up a major crime scene, forensics officers searching for clues that could help identify the offenders.
A crime scene has been established at the intersection of Lyon and Faraday streets.
No arrests have been made.
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