Father kills son following cricket training session in Aus

Melbourne: A mentally ill father has killed his 11-year-old son with a cricket bat following a training session in Australia before being shot dead by police, leaving the country in shock.

Luke Batty was beaten, reportedly with a cricket bat to the head, by his father Greg in front of shocked witnesses last evening including many children at the Tyabb oval, some 100 kilometres southeast of Melbourne. Luke`s 54-year-old father was air-lifted to a hospital. In spite of emergency care, he died later. The shocked and grief stricken community of Tyabb mourned his death. Police said they were investigating the case. Homicide detectives have spoken to several children who saw Luke die and then watched as police then shot his father. Police said they shot the man in the chest after he threatened them with a knife. Police said they tried to subdue him with capsicum spray but that did not work. Police Commander Doug Fryer said a cricket bat was used to bash the victim. "I confirm that the male shot by police is father of the child who is deceased and we`re not looking for anyone else," he said. The boy`s mother Rosie Batty has spoken of her shock after the brutal killing. "What triggered this was a case of his dad having mental health issues," she said. "He was in a homelessness situation for many years, his life was failing, everything was becoming worse in his life and Luke was the only bright light in his life. No one loved Luke more than his father. No one loved Luke more than me we both loved him," she was quoted as saying by Herald Sun. Cricket Australia, in a statement, said members of the Australian cricket team would pay their respects to junior cricketer Batty.