Current:Home > Contact6 dead, suspect killed after stabbing attack at shopping center in Sydney, Australia; multiple people injured -Thrive Financial Network
6 dead, suspect killed after stabbing attack at shopping center in Sydney, Australia; multiple people injured
View
Date:2025-04-12 13:56:24
Police have identified the assailant who stabbed six people to death at a busy Sydney shopping center before he was fatally shot by a police officer.
New South Wales Police said Sunday that Joel Cauchi, 40, was responsible for the Saturday afternoon attack at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction, in the city's eastern suburbs and not far from the world-famous Bondi Beach.
NSW Assistant Police Commissioner Anthony Cooke told reporters at a media conference on Sunday that Cauchi suffered from yet unspecified mental health issues and police investigators weren't treating the attack as terrorism-related.
"We are continuing to work through the profiling of the offender but very clearly to us at this stage it would appear that this is related to the mental health of the individual involved," Cooke said.
"There is still, to this point... no information we have received, no evidence we have recovered, no intelligence that we have gathered that would suggest that this was driven by any particular motivation - ideology or otherwise," he added.
The attack at the shopping center, one of the country's busiest and which was a hub of activity on a particularly warm fall afternoon, began around 3:10 p.m. and police were swiftly called.
Six people — five women and one man, aged between 20 and 55 — were killed in the attack, and 12 others remain in hospital, including a 9-month-old child, whose mother died during the attack.
Two of the six victims were from overseas and have no family in Australia, Cooke said on Sunday.
Video footage shared online appears to show many people fleeing as a knife-wielding Cauchi walked through the shopping center and lunging at people.
Other footage shows a man confronting the attacker on an escalator in the shopping center by holding what appeared to be a post towards him.
Cauchi was shot dead by a lone female police officer at the scene.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the officer was "certainly a hero" who's actions had saved many more lives.
"The wonderful inspector who ran into danger by herself and removed the threat that was there to others, without thinking about the risks to herself," he said.
"We also see the footage of ordinary Australians putting themselves in harm's way in order to help their fellow citizens. That bravery was quite extraordinary that we saw yesterday," he added.
The shopping center remains closed on Sunday and will be an active crime scene for days, police said.
In Britain, the Prince and Princess of Wales posted on X that they were "shocked and saddened" by the stabbings in Sydney. Prince William and his wife Kate, who are royals in Australia, said their thoughts were with those affected and the "heroic emergency responders who risked their own lives to save others."
Britain's King Charles III also posted on X, saying he and his wife Queen Camilla were "utterly shocked and horrified" by the stabbing.
"Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones of those who have been so brutally killed during such a senseless attack," the king said.
Pope Francis also expressed his sadness at the "senseless tragedy" in Sydney, offering his "spiritual closeness" to all those affected and prayers for the dead and injured. The message was contained in a telegram to Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher and sent by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state.
- In:
- Australia
veryGood! (64753)
Related
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- Dogs help detect nearly 6 tons of meth hidden inside squash shipment in California
- Woman jogger killed by naked man rampaging through Swiss park
- Arizona doctors can come to California to perform abortions under new law signed by Gov. Newsom
- Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
- Cassie Ventura reacts to Sean Diddy Combs video of apparent attack in hotel
- Why Kim Kardashian Is Feuding With “Miserable” Khloe Kardashian
- Long-term mortgage rates ease for third straight week, dipping to just below 7%
- Intellectuals vs. The Internet
- The bodies of two Kansas women who disappeared in Oklahoma were found in a buried freezer
Ranking
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- To make it to the 'Survivor' finale, Charlie Davis says being a Swiftie was make or break
- Manhattan DA’s office won’t be punished for document dump that delayed start of Trump criminal trial
- Kentucky governor takes action on Juneteenth holiday and against discrimination based on hairstyles
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- Prosecutors appeal dismissal of some charges against Trump in Georgia election interference case
- Live Nation, Ticketmaster face antitrust lawsuit from DOJ. Will ticket prices finally drop?
- A comment from Trump and GOP actions in the states put contraceptive access in the 2024 spotlight
Recommendation
US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
US Air Force releases first in-flight photos of B-21 Raider, newest nuclear stealth bomber
Florida calls for probe of Starbucks' diversity policies
How Pregnant Vanessa Hudgens Feels About Her Kids Watching Her Movies One Day
Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
New book about Lauren Spierer case reveals never-before published investigation details
NFL legend Warrick Dunn's housing program changes lives of single parents
See Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega get their spooky on in 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' trailer