Attack in Sydney: Police assure that "nothing" suggests a terrorist attack
The attacker who killed six people on Saturday at the Westfield Bondi Junction mall was identified as Joel Cauchi, 40.
A woman lays flowers outside the Westfield Shopping Centre at Bondi Junction in Sydney, Australia. (Cordon Press)
(AFP - VOZ MEDIA) Australian Police identified a 40-year-old man with psychological problems as the attacker who stabbed several people on Saturday in a Sydney (Australia) mall killing six and leaving several others critically injured.
The individual, a native of the northeastern state of Queensland, was known to the authorities and "nothing" suggests that he "was driven by any particular motivation ideology or otherwise," said NSW Assistant Police Commissioner Anthony Cooke. "We know that the offender in the matter suffered from mental health," he added.
The 40-year-old man killed by a police officer at the scene was identified as Joel Cauchi. The tragedy occurred at the Westfield Bondi Junction mall, which was packed with customers at the time.
Keren Webb, another New South Wales state police official, reported that six people were killed, five women and one man. This latest victim, a 30-year-old man, was a Pakistani national, the Pakistani-Australian National Association (APNA) said in a statement.
Twelve people had to be taken to hospital, including a nine-month-old baby who is in "serious but stable" condition, according to police. The infant's mother, who had been seriously injured in the attack, died.
These types of attacks are quite unusual in Australia. In November 2018, an individual armed with a knife killed one person and injured two others on a street in Melbourne, before being shot and killed by police. The Islamic State took responsibility for that attack.
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