'She was trying to save her baby': Tragic details emerge as Bondi mum killed

Ash Good was overjoyed to be a mum, and when she was confronted with a man wielding knife at Bondi Junction on Saturday, she sacrificed herself to save her nine-month-old daughter. 

As police dealt with the tragic aftermath of the mass stabbing at Bondi Junction Westfield late Saturday afternoon, 38-year-old mum, Ash Good, passed away at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney.

Ash was one of six victims stabbed to death at the busy shopping centre around 3:20pm.

According to witnesses, the new mum sacrificed her own life to save her baby, a nine-month-old girl.

“The mum came over with the baby and threw it at me, and I was just holding the baby,” a man, who was shopping with his brother, told 9News.

“I just helped out, just holding the baby and trying to compress the baby and the same with the mother, trying to compress the blood from stopping and calling the ambulance and police.

“We just kept yelling out to get some clothes to help us compress and stop the baby bleeding.”

Ash Good was one of six victims of the stabbing at Bondi Junction on Saturday. Photo: Facebook

Medical teams rushed Ash to St Vincent’s hospital in a critical condition, but tragically, she died soon after arrival.

Her baby is in a serious condition at Sydney Children’s Hospital, her heartbroken dad keeping vigil by the tiny girl’s bedside.

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What happened in the Bondi Junction stabbing?

Just after 3:20pm on Saturday, crowds of shoppers were spending an afternoon at Bondi Junction when terror unfolded.

A 40-year-old man wearing an NRL jersey pulled out a knife and began stabbing shoppers, seemingly at random.

One man and five women, including Ash, are confirmed dead.

Panicked shoppers ran for their lives, desperate to get out of the path of the killer.

If you're worried about how recent events are affecting your child, listen and subscribe to Kidspot's podcast Mum Club. Paediatric Psychologist, Amanda Abel, shares how to speak to children about worrying events and signs to look out for that tell they might be struggling.

In addition to the six killed, eight people were stabbed and remain in hospital.

A senior female police officer who was at the Westfield on a separate assignment confronted the man and shot him to death.

According to NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb, the attacker was “known to police”, and it's believed that he acted alone.

“The motives are not known yet,” she told reporters. “And speculation on that would not be helpful at this time.”

Ash's nine-month-old baby was attacked and remains in serious condition at hospital. Photo: Facebook

Tributes flow for mum killed in Bondi Junction stabbing

Friends and families took to social media overnight, posting heartbroken tributes to Ash.

“I have not slept, I feel completely sick and I cannot believe it,” one woman wrote. “Ash Good, you were such a beautiful soul. To hear this and what has happened to you and your beautiful baby girl, I am beyond devastated.”

Sky News reporter Laura Jayes broke down on air as she reported on the stabbing as her friend Ash became the sixth person to die in the attack.

“I didn’t know the others but I knew one,” Laura said to the camera. At the time, Ash had not been named. “I can tell you that it was a mother, a mother in the prime of her life, a new mother with a nine-month-old baby. She’s a beautiful woman.

“Her baby went into surgery and her mum didn’t make it. That is really hard news to take. She was so smart, so beautiful and it was all ripped away in seconds.”

Ash Good's partner rushed to Sydney Children's Hospital with their nine-month-old daughter. Photo: supplied

 Ash Good becomes a mum

In October, Ash posted on Instagram about becoming a mum, saying she was feeling “so proud, then so overwhelmed”.

“Pure joy and extraordinary exhaustion blended with emotions you’ve never felt before," she wrote.

“It’s a lot. But what I do know is that it really is the most outstandingly beautiful gift one can ever receive.

“Sitting here feeling so deeply thankful, and still pinching myself she’s ours. I love her so much.”

Anthony Albanese speaks after Bondi Junction mass stabbing

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke in Canberra at 7pm on Saturday, saying he’d been briefed by the Australian Federal Police and spy agency ASIO.

“It would appear that this person has acted alone,’’ he said.

“The motives are not known yet. And speculation on that would not be helpful at this time. 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 'She was trying to save her baby': Tragic details emerge as Bondi mum killed