Police in Tennant Creek, in the Northern Territory, received reports of the stabbing about 1.10am on Friday.Â
Responding officers found the injured 21-year-old and applied first aid, but he was declared dead a short time later, police said.
Police on Friday afternoon arrested a 17-year-old male at a Tennant Creek residence in relation to the death.
Acting Commander Mark Grieve told reporters in Darwin on Friday a substantial crowd had been at the scene of the stabbing.
He urged anyone with information on the incident to contact police.
The man was stabbed in the upper body, causing him to lose a lot of blood, he said.
The attack followed "riotous behaviour" in the town last weekend, with cars set alight and a person seriously injured, Mr Grieve said.
"We believe there's been a few flare-ups based in and around some family feuding."
The threat of payback was a constant in such situations, he said.
"It's always something we have to turn our minds to and we do that by reaching out to the Elders," he said.
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