The killer who stabbed six people to death at the Bondi Junction Westfield shopping center was looking for surfing buddies just days before the massacre.
Six innocent shoppers, including five women and a man, were stabbed to death at Bondi Junction Westfield shopping center on Saturday at around 3.20pm.
Police identified the attacker as Joel Cauchi, 40, who moved to Sydney from Queensland a month ago. He lived with schizophrenia and police are investigating a possible history of attacks on women.
Just six days before the attack, Cauchi invited Sydneysiders to join him for surfing at Bondi Beach in a post shared on a Facebook group for beginner surfers.
Cauchi wrote: ‘Hi, I’m surfing in Bondi this afternoon if anyone wants to meet there to surf.’
Joel Cauchi, 40, killed six people and seriously injured nine others, including a nine-month-old baby, in a stabbing at Bondi Junction Westfield’s on Saturday.
The post received an avalanche of backlash moments after police confirmed Cauchi’s identity on Sunday.
In another post, shared in December 2020 in an outdoor adventure Facebook group for Brisbane residents, Cauchi explained that he wanted to meet people who shoot guns.
‘Hi, I’m looking for groups of people who shoot weapons, including pistols, to meet, chat and get to know each other. Please DM me if you can help me! By the way, I live in Brisbane,” Cauchi wrote.
He also recently posted in several astronomy groups asking if he could accompany an astrophotographer on a nighttime adventure so he could learn more about the hobby.
Police confirmed Cauchi, originally from the Brisbane area, was suffering from mental health issues.
There is no suggestion that Cauchi was part of any particular ideology, and police treated the horrific attack as a mental health incident.
Police are currently searching a “very small storage facility” in Sydney that Cauchi rented shortly after the move.
He reportedly slept rough and had no fixed address.
Six days before the horrific attack, Cauchi invited social media users to join him surfing at Bondi Beach (pictured).
Cauchi entered the shopping center brandishing a large knife (pictured). Inspector Amy Scott shot him dead
Cauchi was actively looking for a place to live and had created a profile on Flatmates, an online website for those looking for a shared house.
The 40-year-old was looking for a shared home in Pendle Hill, Blacktown, Paramatta and Liverpool and wrote that he “loves meeting new people and seeing interesting new places”.
Deputy Commissioner Anthony Cooke said detectives have spoken to his family, who have been assisting police with their investigation.
“To this point, we still have not received information, we have not recovered evidence, we have not gathered intelligence that would suggest that this was driven by any particular motivation, whether ideological or otherwise,” Deputy Commissioner Cooke told reporters. in the program. Sunday.
“We continue to work on the profile of the offender but at this stage it seems very clear to us that this is related to the mental health of the individual involved.”
Deputy Commissioner Cooke said police are still working to determine how Cauchi came to possess the weapon, which has been described by witnesses as a 30cm hunting knife.
The 40-year-old had moved to Sydney from Brisbane and was reportedly sleeping rough, with no fixed address. He was actively looking for a place to stay and had shared a profile of himself on an online website for those looking for roommates (pictured).
Police were called to Bondi Junction Westfield at 3.20pm on Saturday when the attack unfolded.
Images shared online showed terrified shoppers running through the center and taking shelter in stores as Cauchi chased men, women and children.
Sword-wielding Cauchi fatally stabbed six people, including mother Ashlee Good, 38, and Dawn, the daughter of billionaire advertising guru John Singleton.
Five of the victims, including Mrs Singleton, three other women believed to be aged between 20 and 55 and a man in his 30s, died at the scene.
Twelve other people, including Mrs Good, her nine-month-old daughter Harriet, eight other women and two men, who suffered stab wounds, were treated by paramedics and taken to various Sydney hospitals.
Ms Good later died at St Vincent’s Hospital while her daughter underwent emergency surgery at Sydney Children’s Hospital in Randwick, where she is now in a serious but stable condition.
Detective Inspector Amy Scott was on patrol nearby and was the first to arrive at the scene and has been hailed as a hero and praised for her bravery.
Inspector Scott entered the shopping center alone and ran through the upper level of the complex, before risking her life and confronting Cauchi.
Cauchi pounced on Inspector Scott, who shot him dead.
The senior police officer performed CPR on the killer, along with other victims who were lying on the ground in nearby tents while waiting for backup to arrive.
Inspector Scott is “doing well under the circumstances”, New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb said on Saturday night.
She will be formally interviewed as part of the investigation into the deadly stabbings.
She bravely ran towards the offender, before shooting him dead as he lunged at her with the knife.