Six people were killed and several others injured in a stabbing rampage Saturday afternoon at a crowded major mall in Sydney, Australia’s deadliest act of mass violence in at least eight years.
The attacker was shot and killed by a lone police officer who was directed into the mall by people fleeing the scene, police said. The officer was following the man with the knife, trying to catch up to him, when he turned and lunged at her with the weapon, according to the police. The officer then opened fire, saving lives, Anthony Cooke, assistant commissioner for the New South Wales Police, said.
The man stabbed people as he moved through the mall, the police said. Four women and one man died at the scene. Emergency responders said eight people were transported to area hospitals, and the police said that one of them, a woman, later died. A 9-month-old baby was among those injured and has been in surgery, Karen Webb, the New South Wales Police commissioner, said.
The police said they have not formally identified the man but believe they know his identity. They believe he was 40 years old and acted alone, and that there is no continuing threat, Police Commissioner Webb said.
The attack has stunned and horrified a country where acts of mass violence are rare. “Australians will be shocked tonight,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at a news conference on Saturday afternoon.
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The police said the attacker’s motive was unclear, but there were no immediate indications that it was a hate crime. He did not appear to be targeting any specific person, the police said.
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The attack happened in Bondi Junction, a busy commercial district in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs, a wealthy area near the coast.
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Multiple calls about a stabbing began coming from people at the mall, the Westfield Bondi Junction, shortly after 3:30 p.m.
Damien Cave contributed reporting.