Security guard pleaded for help as Bondi killer struck. He got no answer

A security guard has wept at the toll of the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing, which left one colleague dead and another injured, recalling the moments he thought he, too, was going to die and his attempts to shield children from the “traumatic” sight of wounded shoppers.

His emotional evidence came after the inquest heard security staff failed to alert those in the centre to the attack over the PA for almost 20 minutes. By then seven people, including the attacker, were dead.

The streets outside Westfield Bondi Junction in lockdown on the night of the attack.Credit: Dion Georgopoulos

Joel Cauchi, 40, targeted shoppers without warning using a large military knife about 3.33pm on April 13, 2024. Within seconds, he stabbed Dawn Singleton and Jade Young, delivering fatal injuries.

A coronial inquest into the mass casualty event has heard Westfield’s CCTV control room was briefly unattended at that exact time because the lone operator had stepped out for a bathroom break.

But, within a minute of Cauchi’s first strike, security guards were screaming “code black alpha” over their radios and alerting each other that shoppers were “bleeding” on the floor of the Westfield.

A security boss, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, took the stand on Thursday and said he raced downstairs toward the chaotic scenes.

Faraz Tahir, 30, died a hero confronting Joel Cauchi on his first shift as a security guard at Westfield Bondi Junction.

The security boss radioed his control room asking where he needed to go, and how many attackers were active, but received no response.

After one minute and 40 seconds, the control room operator stepped back in to the room. The same minute, security guard Faraz Tahir was fatally stabbed.

Ten other people were injured, including another security guard, Muhammad Taha. Both men had confronted Cauchi without concern for their own safety.

At 3.36pm, two people were watching the cameras in the control room, but no alarms and no alerts were going out over the PA systems.

CCTV footage of Joel Cauchi during the Bondi Junction attack.

The security boss at that time was on level four, where Singleton and Young were dead or dying. Another guard told him to get privacy screens.

“I saw children, I knew one glance could be traumatising,” the security boss said.

The boss took off his jacket to help perform CPR as three shots rang out at 3.38pm.

The security boss did not know at the time that NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott had pulled the trigger and killed Cauchi as he rushed at her with the knife.

The security boss and others ran into a nearby store, fearing they were being shot at by an attacker.

“I told [the store worker], ‘I’m not going to die here, and if he comes to the door we have to do something,’ ” he said, wiping his eyes.

The first PA alert was read out by the control room at 3.52pm, almost 20 minutes after Cauchi’s attack began and 15 minutes after Scott had killed him.

The security boss on Thursday broke down in tears saying the tragic events had weighed “heavy on my mind”.

“I’m not trying to take anything from anyone, but I just want to acknowledge the security team with me on that day during the tragic stabbing … it was truly traumatic and not everyone understands the fear and chaos we faced,” he said.

“Everyone showed great courage performing CPR, taking people to safety as best as you could.

“I know some of you are still carrying the weight of that day and life hasn’t been the same since.

“I see your strength and I recognise your pain … Thank you for being there for me.”

The alert that went out was for an evacuation, rather than an active armed offender.

The inquest has heard the alarm system was so loud the police asked for it to be turned off as it made radio communication impossible.

The court was also told the female control room operator had struggled performing in the role with communications.

Her bosses considered replacing her, and all operators had been instructed not to leave the cameras unattended even for short breaks.

A security trainer, who also can’t be identified, told the inquest there was pressure to hire a control room operator but said he was never directed to “rush” the woman through the training.

“There was pressure for recruitment. I hope that didn’t affect my training.”

However, he agreed it was “possible” the pressure did affect the training.

Chief security warden Joseph Gaerlan had raced down to level five following the initial alerts, and was filmed turning on his heel and rushing back to the control room.

Cauchi would be shot as Gaerlan helped brief police and his own bosses from inside the control room.

“Everyone on the day tried to respond in the best way we could,” Gaerlan said.

“I really feel frustrated watching the CCTV post the incident because, in my mind, the reality of the incident did not span over such a length of time.”

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