The grieving sister of a gunman who plunged Merredin into lockdown on October 21 before turning the weapon on himself has apologised to his victims but believes her brother was also a victim.
Speaking to 9 News Perth Jessica Sexton threw her support behind the West Australian government’s gun reforms but has party blamed WA’s mental health system.
She said her 31-year-old brother Nathan Sexton couldn’t get the mental health help he needed.
“He’s not a monster, he’s a good person...I wish I could help him, I just want it to be a bad dream,” she said. “I just wonder what was going through his head. How down and out he was feeling.”
On October 21 Nathan crashed his Holden Commodore on Albany Highway in the Wheatbelt town of Bannister then shot at a ute that had stopped to help twice.
He then carjacked another car of good Samaritans before leading WA Police on a police manhunt through Merredin that ended when he turned the weapon on himself.
Jessica said Nathan struggled with addiction for most of his life and had been eight years sober until earlier this year when he was separated from his one-year-old son.
“He was deteriorating, you could see the hurt in his eyes, you could see the pain in his eyes,” she said.
Jessica says without access to mental health support she believes he returned to drugs.
She apologised to Nathan’s victims.
“It’s not fair, it’s not fair, you’ve got to live with that,” she said.
She is now furious as to how her brother got access to the gun and backed the government’s impending gun reforms which include ongoing mandatory mental health checks.
“I would love to know where he got the gun from because they should be held responsible,” she said.
9 News Perth