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EXCLUSIVE Shocking eshay crime wave terrifies a suburb: KARLEIGH SMITH reports from Aussie town on edge... as a horrendous woman-on-woman brawl breaks out in front of her eyes
A suburb just minutes from the centre of Hobart, Tasmania is under siege from out-of-control youth gangs who follow the 'eshay' trend, plus a disturbing spate of adult crime.
Local 'eshays' - a subculture of boys and young men known for their anti-social behaviour, questionable hairstyles and fashion choices - have taken over the picturesque village of Glenorchy, terrorising residents.
The roaming youths, some as young as ten, are known to be armed with knives, screwdrivers, and even hammers and stun guns. They appear to target the vulnerable including the elderly, women, girls, and shopkeepers.
Anti-social behaviour in Glenorchy, north of the Tasmanian capital's CBD, is so rampant that Daily Mail Australia witnessed two sisters viciously attacking each other outside a local shopping centre about 1.25pm on Monday.
Stunned onlookers watched as the two middle-aged women punched each other in the face, wrestled on the ground, and tore out each other's hair.
The shocking altercation lasted more than half an hour, during which the shopping centre's security guard was heard complaining that he 'couldn't get police on the phone.'
Community security guards - usually charged with patrolling for youth crime - arrived and attempted to separate the brawling women.
The fight continued until police turned up around 1.50pm.
Blood and hair littered the ground in the aftermath.
One local remarked: 'Welcome to Glenorchy. This kind of thing happens all the time.'
'Someone is going to get killed one day.'
Local worker Tina, 52, who Daily Mail Australia is choosing not to identify, said she feels unsafe when she commutes home from work late at night.
She said the young people approach her in the bus mall asking for money for cigarettes.
On one occasion, a group of about five eshays asked if they could come home with her and attempted to board her bus home.
She described feeling unsettled as a woman on her own. 'I've been told that one of them had a stun gun, and another one had a hammer,' Tina claimed.
She also revealed an elderly friend of hers - aged in her 70s and in a wheelchair due to multiple sclerosis - was hospitalised for weeks after being 'pushed down an escalator' by the children.
The eshays are known to steal from local shops, and gleefully tell shopping centre security that they 'can't touch' them because it's 'child abuse'.
Local businesses including a Japanese restaurant, a coffee shop, and a massage parlour have been repeatedly vandalised.
Sam Fu, owner of Bento Glenorchy, has had his restaurant egged, windows smashed once a month - costing $800 each time to fix - and even had booths and wallpaper ripped out by the young thugs.
He recalled a fed-up diner retaliating against one child.
'One of the kids was here being a nuisance, and the man punched him,' Sam said.
A local council worker, who asked not to be named, said other locals have been taking matters into their own hands.
'The little buggers will steal things, make a mess, and laugh at security guards because [the kids] know they can't do anything. As soon as the guards put their hands on the kids, they shout about 'child abuse',' said the source.
'But one day a a member of the public was in the food court watching this and he said, 'They might not be able to do anything, but I can'. And he punched the kid.
'It's not good. Innocent people are going to get hurt.'
Some locals were quick to note that things had improved 'slightly' recently, due in part to the cooler winter weather keeping kids indoors, but also a recently launched Tasmania Police taskforce.
Taskforce Respect is a new community campaign involving high visibility patrols in Glenorchy.
Inspector Jason Klug said officers are targeting recidivist offenders and anti-social behaviour, with police data showing just 57 people made up 50 per cent of youth crime charges across the state in 2024.
'Our message to these people is simple, if you are offending in the Glenorchy area, then we will be looking out for you,' inspector Klug said.
'Our aim is to ensure a safer, more welcoming environment for businesses, residents and visitors.'
What is an eshay?
An eshay can be spotted by their trainers, worn with polo shirts, puffer jackets, tracksuit pants or baggy shorts and baseball caps.
Favoured labels for the fashionable eshay include Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, and Lacoste, paired with Nautica, Adidas, Under Armour and Ellesse.
He perhaps gives the impression he is looking to score drugs or moments away from robbing an innocent passerby of their belongings.
Some eshays scramble words and put 'ay' on the end in a form of pig Latin. 'Eetswa' means 'sweet' and 'chill' becomes 'illchay'.
The term eshay is similar to the UK phrase 'chav' and can be interchangeable with 'lad', which in turn sometimes becomes 'adlay'.
When an eshay says 'eshay' it can mean yes, cool or excellent.
Something high-risk is 'red hot' and an idiot is a 'gronk'. To 'staunch' someone is to intimidate them, often with an intense stare while the challenger's fists are held between their legs.
Eshays are said to have spread from Sydney's inner-city graffiti scene in the 1980s through Housing Commission estates and out into the suburbs.
Hard-core eshays can engage in assaults, robberies and threatening behaviour against other youths but many seem to wander the streets and hang around train stations aimlessly.
Some are said to 'roll' victims for their shoes and clothes but such crimes are not widely reported.
While some eshays had domestic backgrounds of violence, poverty and drug or alcohol use, many were likely copying a look that merely suggested a criminal outlook.
Their antics, which can include carrying weapons and taking drugs, are often filmed and posted on TikTok.
'Eshay' may have started as 'eshay adlay' - pig Latin for 'he's lad' or be connected to 'sesh', for a prolonged period of drug consumption.
