On Saturday, in a shocking incident at a shopping mall in Sydney, a man who fatally stabbed five individuals was shot and killed by police officers in the beachside suburb of Bondi. This tragic event triggered panic, leading hundreds of shoppers to flee the scene in distress.
Police reported that the assailant was shot by an officer after he attacked nine people in the crowded Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre.
“She discharged a firearm and that person is now deceased. I am advised that there are five victims who are now deceased as a result of the actions of this offender,” New South Wales Police Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cooke told a press conference.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a post on X (Previously Twitter) “I have been briefed by the AFP on the devastating events at Bondi Junction. Tragically, multiple casualties have been reported and the first thoughts of all Australians are with those affected and their loved ones.” He further posted “Our hearts go out to those injured and we offer our thanks to those caring for them as well as our brave police and first responders.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said there was no indication yet of the man’s motive. “This was a horrific act of violence, indiscriminately targeting innocent people going about an ordinary Saturday doing their shopping,” he told a press conference.
“Tonight the first thoughts of all Australians are with the victims of these terrible acts.”
Australia has some of the world’s toughest gun and knife laws, and attacks such as the one on Saturday are rare.
‘ON THE RAMPAGE’
Police stated that emergency services were dispatched to the mall shortly before 4 p.m. (0600 GMT) following reports of the stabbings. According to a spokesperson from New South Wales Ambulance, eight individuals, including a child, were transported to the hospital.
Reese Colmenares, an eyewitness who hid in a hardware store with 20 others when people started running out of the mall, said she saw a baby with stab wounds being taken to an ambulance.
“The mother was terrified, the mother was sad, just holding (and) comforting the baby,” she told Reuters.
Two other witnesses told Reuters they heard shots fired.
“Even 20 minutes after people were rushed out of the mall, I saw SWAT teams sweeping the surrounding streets,” one witness said.
The other said they saw a woman lying on the ground and took shelter in a jewellery store.
An eyewitness described the police officer shooting the attacker to state broadcaster ABC.
“If she did not shoot him, he would have kept going, he was on the rampage,” said the man, who did not give his name. “She went over and was giving him CPR. He had a nice big blade on him. He looked like he was on a killing spree.”
Numerous social media posts depicted crowds escaping the mall and showed police and emergency vehicles hurrying to the scene.
With Inputs from Reuters
