A Hobart security guard stabbed in the chest with a syringe by an alleged thief faces a nervous wait to get a medical all-clear.
The 58-year-old man was working at Eastlands shopping centre at about 3pm (AEDT) on Thursday when he followed a woman suspected of shoplifting, police said.
Minutes later in a nearby car park the woman turned on him, armed with a syringe of unknown contents, and the guard was stabbed.
"He's received precautionary treatment as a result ... testing is still being conducted," Constable Sarah Wilson told reporters on Friday.
"The security guard is doing okay, obviously it's going to have an effect on him."
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The detective added the alleged assault was unusual in nature.
"Assaults with the use of a syringe is certainly uncommon," she said.
A 32-year-old Bridgewater woman is due to face court charged with aggravated armed robbery and other offences.
