BORDER police have united to tackle of knife crime as a Wodonga man recovers in hospital from the latest stabbing.
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A man, 42, was stabbed after an argument at a house in Mactier Street about 11.45pm on Thursday.
It was the sixth stabbing across Albury, Wodonga and Wangaratta since Christmas and police fear someone will be killed unless the number of knives on the streets is reduced.
The stabbing was the fourth in Wodonga in just a month and follows hold-ups involving knives in Albury and Wangaratta this week.
Officers from both sides of the border met this week and agreed to a zero-tolerance approach to illegal weapons.
At least a knife a week, including a 28-centimetre hunting knife, has been seized in Wodonga since December 1.
Crime prevention officer Sen-Constable Matt Barnes, of Albury police, said knife-related incidents were potentially fatal.
“If people are carrying these items on either side of the border, police are able to use lethal force to deal with it,” he said.
“If you want to come at the police with a knife, or threaten the public with a knife, that’s an incident that can escalate very quickly, that’s how people get shot.
“And that’s why we’re so concerned about these issues, because, ultimately, people get seriously injured or die, and it doesn’t take a large incision to kill someone with a knife.”
The Border Mail has reported on 15 knife-related crimes, including 10 stabbings, throughout the Border and North East since the end of September.