In a Sydney suburb, a man with a knife killed five people and stabbed several others. The Australian police announced this in the afternoon. New South Wales State Police also confirm the death of the perpetrator, who was shot. The police did not provide any further information about the attacker. Reports of a possible second attacker were not confirmed. Australian broadcaster ABC reported, citing rescue workers, that seven people were taken to hospital with stab wounds, including a nine-month-old baby. It was initially unclear whether the attack was a terrorist attack or not.
The shopping center was immediately evacuated. Hundreds of people rushed out. Some are said to have cried. According to them, there was a body lying on the ground. Eyewitnesses told ABC that a man ran into the shopping center with a knife and stabbed customers. The 9 News station showed a video showing the alleged perpetrator walking through the mall with a knife in his right hand. He was wearing a sports t-shirt with a pattern in the shape of a large “V” on it. Some of the people were only a few meters away from him. In the video he appears to be randomly following different people. Another video shows the same armed man on an escalator being held at bay by another person.
Witness heard three shots
In their initial statement, the police spoke of a “critical incident”. “Just before 4pm, emergency services were called to Westfield Bondi Junction after several people had been stabbed.” The population is urged to avoid the area. “The investigation into this incident is ongoing and there are no further details.” Two eyewitnesses told The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper that they were shopping when they saw around 20 people walking down an escalator. Someone shouted, “There’s a man stabbing people!” reported Hannah Bodrozic and Guy Johnston. There was chaos and they didn’t know where to run. The shops around them had their shutters down. Then they heard three shots.
A large number of ambulances and police vehicles were parked on the streets outside the shopping center. The Westfield Shopping Mall is located in the Bondi Junction area east of Sydney, which is particularly busy at weekends. Downtown Sydney and the famous Bondi Beach are just a few minutes’ drive away. ABC reporter Lia Harris reported that dozens, if not hundreds, of police stormed the mall.
Armed police officers also gathered on the roofs of the surrounding buildings. “It’s swarming with emergency services,” the reporter told the television station. Another ABC employee reported how he and other customers left a store through a back door. He praised the exemplary actions of the sales staff in the emergency. One young woman described the incident as “the worst thing I have ever experienced”. She saw a woman lying on the floor in a luxury clothing store. She was very scared and feared that she would die. “It’s just that everything, every moment, is in my head,” she added.
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