The Sydney stabbings attacker who killed six people has been named by police.
New South Wales Police (NSW) said on Sunday that Joel Cauchi, 40, was responsible for the attack on Saturday afternoon at a busy Sydney shopping centre before he was fatally shot by a police officer.
Cauchi, who police said suffered from unspecified mental health issues, launched the knife attack at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction.
Investigators are not treating the incident as terrorism-related and have spoken to Cauchi’s family.
NSW assistant police commissioner Anthony Cooke told reporters at a press conference: “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.
“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.”
Image: A woman pays her respect and lays flowers at the scene of Saturday’s mass stabbing. Pic: Reuters
Image: Ashlee Good
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0:48
Dying mum throws baby to brothers
New mum Ashlee Good has been named as one of the six people killed in the stabbings.
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The 38-year-old was reported to have thrown her baby to two men after she was injured.
“I was holding the baby. It looked pretty bad,” one of the men told 9News.
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His brother added: “He helped with holding the baby and trying to compress the baby and same with the mother.
Image: Pic: Reuters
Image: Police do not believe the attack was terror-related. Pic: Reuters
“We just kept yelling out to get some clothes, get some shirts and just help us to compress and stop the baby from bleeding.”
The other brother added: “There was a lot of blood on the floor. I hope the baby is alright.”
A statement from Ms Good’s family, as reported by ABC, said: “Today we are reeling from the terrible loss of Ashlee, a beautiful mother, daughter, sister, partner, friend, all-round outstanding human, and so much more.
“We appreciate the well wishes and thoughts of members of the Australian public who have expressed an outpouring of love for Ashlee and our baby girl.
Image: Pic: Reuters
Image: Pic: Reuters
“The two men who held and cared for our baby when Ashlee could not – words cannot express our gratitude. We are struggling to come to terms with what has occurred.”
The family added that after hours of surgery the baby was doing well.
The daughter of an Australian businessman has also been named as one of the victims.
Dawn Singleton, 25, was also killed according to widespread media reports in Australia.
Her dad, John Singleton, 82, is a well-known Australian entrepreneur.
According to Ms Singleton’s LinkedIn profile she studied a degree in communications at the University of Technology Sydney.
Six people, five women and one man, aged between 20 and 55, were killed in the attack and 12 others remain in hospital including Ms Good’s child.
Police added that two of the victims were from overseas.
Video footage appears to show people fleeing from a knife-wielding Cauchi as he walked through the shopping centre, lunging at people.
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He was only stopped when a lone female police officer shot Cauchi dead at the scene.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the lone officer was “certainly a hero” whose actions had saved many more lives.
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Authorities said the suspect is known to them
He added: “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.
“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.”
The shopping centre remains closed on Sunday and will be an active crime scene over the coming days, police said.
Source : Sky News
