Hero cop’s sleepless night after she shot Bondi Westfield killer
The “hero” cop who gunned down the Bondi stabber has spoken to colleagues after the harrowing incident. Warning: Graphic content.
National
Don't miss out on the headlines from National. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The heroic cop who gunned down the Bondi stabber during his deadly shopping centre massacre has told friends she has barely slept but was “content” with her actions.
Six people were killed and others wounded, including a nine-month-old baby, in the unprovoked attack by 40-year-old Queensland man Joel Cauchi at the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre on Saturday.
NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott was reportedly the first officer on the scene and bravely took on the knife-wielding attacker alone, before shooting him dead with a bullet to the chest when he lunged at her.
Police Association of NSW boss Kevin Morton told The Daily Telegraph he had checked in on Inspector Scott overnight and again today.
“Amy is content with what she had to do,’’ he said.
“I spoke to her last night and again this morning and she said, ‘It was a night with not a lot of sleep’.
“She knows she has been tagged a hero but to her she was doing her job. I didn’t ask her about the exact incident, because she is yet to be formally interviewed.”
After shooting Cauchi, she then performed CPR on the killer, along with some of his victims lying on the ground as she waited for back-up to arrive.
“She (the police officer) was there on her own and she went towards the danger,” Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos told Sky News UK.
“Even (after she shot the attacker), she immediately began applying CPR – that just shows you the dedication of the person and her incredible act of heroism – even then her main concern was for someone who had fallen.”
Cafe owner Michael Dunkley witnessed the moment the hero cop shot the attacker in the busy shopping centre.
Mr Dunkley said the cop said “drop the knife” before the stabber lunged at her with a 15cm-long knife.
“She was put in a situation where she had to do it. She did it so calmly. She was amazing,” he told news.com.au.
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said Inspector Scott was “doing well under the circumstances” on Saturday evening.
“She showed enormous courage and bravery,” the police commissioner continued, adding Scott was alone when she confronted the suspect.
“She will be interviewed tomorrow.”
The horror unfolded at 3.20pm on Saturday in Sydney’s Bondi Junction when a man in an NRL jersey began stabbing shoppers at random, with five women and one man now confirmed dead. Multiple people were stabbed during the horror as panicked families ran for their lives, with eight people still in hospital.
Police were seen battling to save victims’ lives across multiple shops, with blood splattered throughout the once bustling mall.
Several stories have emerged of general members of the public risking their own lives to take down the knifeman, with some throwing tables and chairs at him and astonishing footage emerging of one man taking him on with a bollard.
As night fell, dozens of heavily armed police and ambulances were still outside the shopping complex, with stretchers ready to take people to nearby hospitals.
The sound of police sirens and helicopters filled the air.
The mall has been locked down and police have urged people to avoid the area.
Meanwhile, people from around the world have reacted to news of the killings.
Britain’s King Charles III said he and his wife Queen Camilla were “utterly shocked and horrified” by the stabbing.
Pope Francis said he was “deeply saddened” by the attack and sent his “spiritual solidarity to all those affected” in a message addressed to the archbishop of Sydney.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that his “heart goes out” to the families affected but that it was too early to speculate on a motive. He also paid tribute to the bravery of the police officer who shot dead the attacker.
“She entered the proceedings that were taking place, obviously very dangerous, by herself, she is certainly a hero,’’ the Prime Minister said.
“There is no doubt that she saved lives through her actions.”
Police said the attacker is believed to be a 40-year-old man who was known to law enforcement, but he has not yet been formally identified.
Webb played down suggestions that the attack could have been an act of terrorism and said it is believed the attacker acted alone.
“If it is in fact the person we believe it is, then… it’s not a terrorism incident,” she said.
Ash Good, 38, was one of the victims brutally attacked, and the first to be publicly identified. Tragically, she died in hospital on Saturday evening, after desperately trying to save her nine-month old daughter’s life, who was also stabbed.
According to witnesses, Ms Good tried to save her daughter after they were both attacked, handing her baby to two strangers as she fought for life.
The Sydney mum was rushed to St Vincent’s hospital in a critical condition, but died soon after arriving.
Her baby remains in a serious condition at the Sydney Children’s Hospital, in the care of medical staff and her dad, who rushed there after the attacks.
Just hours before the senseless attacks, she posted heartbreaking images of her happy nine month old baby girl on social media, to a soundtrack of My Girl.
Mr Albanese described footage of the incident as “quite extraordinary”.
“Staff, for whom this should have been a normal shift, shoppers peacefully going about their lives and yet for these Australians, their first instinct in the face of danger was to help someone else,” he said.
“That is what we hold on to tonight as Australians. That’s confirmation of who we are. Brave, strong, together.”
Security camera footage showed a man wearing a green sports jersey running around the shopping centre with a large knife.
Injured people lay lifeless on the floor, or surrounded by pools of blood. Eyewitnesses described a scene of panic, with shoppers scrambling to safety and police trying to secure the area.
Many people took shelter in shops, trying to protect themselves, their families and frightened strangers.
One witness told news.com.au that they saw the bodies of two young people in front of the JD Sports store on level four, with videos emerging showing other victims sprawled on the ground in a nearby Zara.
Malabar friends Johnny Santos and Kevin Tjoe were shopping at Woolworths when someone came down the escalators, yelling there was a person stabbing people.
The pair then saw the man in a green jersey down the escalators.
“This guy was out of his mind, properly on drugs. He was stumbling,” he said.
The pair said people began throwing bollards down from the level above to try and hit the stabber. They said two managed to hit him, with the stabber then running back up the escalators.
Terry White worker Ayah Dahroug bravely told them and others to take shelter inside the chemist, giving people crutches and walking sticks to arm themselves.
One text exchange reportedly between a young girl and her parent shows her describing hearing gunshots and taking cover inside David Jones.
The Prime Minister was also briefed by the Australian Federal Police and the domestic spy agency ASIO.
“The motives are not known yet. And speculation on that would not be helpful at this time,” he said.
“But we have been clear and transparent, and I know that the NSW Police as well as the AFP has made information available, as a priority, because we understand that the Australian public will be very shocked by this event.
“For all of us tonight, the devastating scenes at Bondi Junction are beyond words or understanding. Australians will be shocked this evening. This was a horrific act of violence, indiscriminately targeted at innocent people going about an ordinary Saturday doing their shopping.”
Originally published as Hero cop’s sleepless night after she shot Bondi Westfield killer
Telstra under fire over China ‘sabotage’ fears
Tensions were high at Telstra’s annual general meeting, with shareholders urging the board to address fears Australia’s mobile network could be sabotaged.
‘Fiddling’: Surcharge crackdown lashed
A crackdown on card surcharges has been criticised as “fiddling around the edges while Rome burns”.