April 13 (UPI) — Six people were stabbed to death and a man wielding a knife shot dead by police Saturday at a shopping mall in Sydney, authorities said.
Five women and one man were killed during the stabbing rampage at the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping center, while a 9-month-old baby was among another group of people hospitalized with injuries, according to New South Wales police.
Police said the incident began around 3.30 p.m. local time when emergency services were called to the mall following reports multiple people had been stabbed.
An officer attached to Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command responded and was allegedly confronted by a man with a knife. Police said the man lunged at the officer before he was fatally shot.
The officer conducted CPR on the suspect until the arrival of paramedics, according to a police statement. The medics, however, could not revive the man, who was declared dead at the scene.
Police identified the suspect as 40-year-old Joel Cauchi. Authorities believed the attack was related to Cauchi’s mental health and was not an act of terror or ideologically motivated.
Cauchi, who was previously known to police but had never before been arrested or charged with a crime, was originally from Queensland. He moved to New South Wales just a month before the attack.
The shopping center remained closed, and a crime scene has been established.
Authorities said the NSW Crime Command’s Homicide Squad and the Central Metropolitan Region are leading the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb told reporters four women and a man were found dead in the shopping center and another woman died after being taken to a hospital.
Webb said eight people were people treated for injuries, but later reports indicated the number of those hospitalized had risen to 11, including a 9-month-old baby.
Webb said there was no immediate indication that any of the victims were specifically targeted or that the incident represented a terrorist attack.
“The community … should feel very sad about what’s happened here [but] they should have no ongoing concerns,” she said. “We believe that this person acted alone and there’s no ongoing threat to the community.”
The incident shocked Australia and brought strong responses from politicians.
“This was a horrific act of violence, indiscriminately targeted at innocent people going about an ordinary Saturday, doing their shopping,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in an address. “Tonight the first thoughts of all Australians are with the victims of these terrible acts and their loved ones.”
He praised the first responders and the medical personnel who would be “working through the night” to the save the lives of those injured in the attack.
“To any Australian affected by this tragedy, every Australian is with you,” the prime minister added.
“We have lost six innocent lives, and tonight there are medical staff working around the clock to try to save the lives of at least eight others,” New South Wales Acting Premier Penny Sharpe said a briefing.
The incident brought a statement of support and condolences from the Prince and Princess of Wales.
“We are shocked and saddened by the terrible events in Sydney earlier today.,” Prince William and Princess Catherine said in a social media post. “Our thoughts are with all those affected, including the loved ones of those lost and the heroic emergency responders who risked their own lives to save others.”
