Lex Valluzzi, Staff Writer
On April 13, in Sydney, Australia, disaster struck the Westfield Bondi Junction Shopping Center when a man armed with a knife stabbed several people. There were six victims who were fatally stabbed, at least one dozen more injured including a baby, and the suspect himself has been declared dead after he was confronted on the escalator of the mall by police officer, Amy Scott.
Those injured in the attack had been rushed to a local hospital, many of which are in serious critical condition. The stabbings have been declared the deadliest mass violence attack in the country of Australia since 2017.
The mall was at its busiest that Saturday afternoon with shoppers going about their daily routines. The stabbings occurred at 3 p.m. Australian EST. The attacks left shoppers to evacuate and first responders rushing to the shopping center. Interviews with shoppers described the scene as “a lot of screaming and running.”
Out of the six people that died, five were women and one was a man. An investigation went underway into 40-year-old Joel Cauchi, the suspect in the shopping center stabbings. The police have an ongoing theory that the suspect may have been targeting women. Overall, police commissioner Karen Webb has stated that the attack was not terrorist related and there’s no ongoing threat. The police have also deduced that the stabbing rampage may have stemmed from mental health related issues.
The victims have been identified as the following: 38-year-old Ashlee Good, 30-year-old Faraz Tahir, 47-year-old Jade Young, 25-year-old Dawn Singleton, 55-year-old Pikria Darchia, and 27-year-old Yixuan Cheng. Joel Cauchi was also declared dead after Cauchi lunged at Officer Scott with the knife, causing Officer Scott to shoot Cauchi.
The Sydney community, as well as the Austrian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, have declared Officer Scott a hero. If it was not for her brave actions, the list of victims may have grown exponentially. Scott has come forward after the incident stating, “I am not a hero. I was just doing my job and I am content with my actions.”
The Cauchi family has also come forward to make statements. They have said they had “no problem with the cop who killed Cauchi. She was only doing her job to protect others. We hope she is coping alright.”
Another unlikely hero in the stabbings was French tourist Damien Guerot, who fended off the stabber with a plastic chair in an attempt to protect the people who were on one floor of the shopping center. Prime Minister Albanese has rewarded Guerot for his heroism with Australian citizenship. “We welcome you as a citizen, but that would be a loss for France,” said Albanese.
A candlelight vigil and a permanent memorial will be held at Bondi Junction to honor the victims of the stabbings to show solidarity to the survivors. The event will also honor the emergency response teams and Officer Scott. The mall is currently closed and set to reopen this Friday. Rest in peace to those who lost their lives during this chaotic and violent event.
Leave a Reply