12-year-old girl arrested over fatal stabbing of woman in Melbourne

Girl was taken to hospital for assessment

File Victorian police work the scene of a deadly car crash outside the Royal Hotel in Daylesford, Australia (AAP IMAGE)

A 12-year-old girl has been arrested in Melbourne over the death of a woman in an alleged stabbing incident.

Victoria police said they responded to emergency calls from Barkly Street in Footscray at about 2am on Thursday and found a 37-year-old woman dead.

"Officers quickly attended and arrested the girl at the scene," a Victoria Police spokesperson said.

"She was taken to hospital for assessment where she remains under police guard."

It is believed that an altercation broke out in the upper floors of the Royal Hotel building which have been converted into apartments, according to news.com.au.

Police urged car owners whose vehicles were parked along the street to check for their dashcam footage and report if they find anything unusual.

Forensic examiners reached the crime site in the morning hours and collected evidence.

“Investigators are attempting to establish if the parties were known to each other,” Victoria Police added.

Residents in the area and local businesses said they were shocked by the alleged murder of the woman and complained that there has been an increase in crime in the past few years.

“After the pandemic people are just so agro (aggressive), I don’t know what’s going on, they get heated up so quickly,” said a local business owner who was not named by the outlet.

“I had an incident just last night where someone tried to kick in the windows to my shop, I reported it to the police,” the business owner said.