People were led out from the Westfield Shopping Centre where multiple people were stabbed in Sydney on Saturday. Photo / AP
People were led out from the Westfield Shopping Centre where multiple people were stabbed in Sydney on Saturday. Photo / AP
Hundreds of lives would have been lost in a Sydney shopping centre killing rampage if Australia did not have strict gun laws, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says.
The Prime Minister joined NSW Premier Chris Minns outside Westfield Bondi Junction on Sunday afternoon to lay flowers as the nation reeled from the random attack.
Queenslander Joel Cauchi, 40, stabbed six people to death and seriously wounded 12 others on Saturday afternoon before being shot dead by Inspector Amy Scott.
Albanese said there was no doubt Scott saved lives and so too had Australia’s robust gun controls, implemented following the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.
Joel Cauchi, 40, stabbed six people to death before being shot dead by Inspector Amy Scott. Photo / News.com.au
“This man wielded a deadly weapon in the form of a knife,” the Prime Minister told ABC Radio Sydney
“But if it was an automatic gun then we would have been speaking about hundreds of deaths.
“It is an important reminder of how important it is that we do have strong gun laws in this country.”
Albanese called for flags at government buildings across Australia to be flown at half-mast on Monday in a national sign of mourning for the victims of the stabbing.
Five women and a man were killed in Cauchi’s stabbing rampage, with police saying there is no evidence to suggest the attack was motivated by any ideology.
Among the victims was 38-year-old osteopath Ashlee Good, whose 9-month-old daughter was also injured during the mass stabbing and remained in intensive care on Sunday after undergoing emergency surgery.
Ash Good, Jade Young, Faraz Tahir and Dawn Singleton are four of the victims of the attack. Photo / AP
Good, the daughter of former North Melbourne AFL player and board member Kerry Good, was remembered by her family as a “beautiful mother, daughter, sister, partner, friend” and an “all-round outstanding human”.
An emotional North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson described her death as a “bloody tragedy” as landmarks in Melbourne were lit up on Sunday night in tribute to the victims and survivors.
“That poor little girl ... without her mum now - she was a beautiful, beautiful lady,” he told reporters.
Other victims identified are Dawn Singleton, the 25-year-old daughter of multi-millionaire businessman John Singleton, 47-year-old architect Jade Young, 30-year-old security guard Faraz Tahir and 55-year-old artist and designer Pikria Darchia.
55-year-old Pikria Darchia is the fifth identified victim of the Sydney stabbing attack. Photo / NSW Police
Cauchi’s estranged family issued a statement through Queensland police on Sunday afternoon, declaring they were devastated by the traumatic events and expressing their sorrow for the victims.
“Joel’s actions were truly horrific, and we are still trying to comprehend what has happened,” the statement read.
“He has battled with mental health issues since he was a teenager.”
Joel Cauchi, 40, has been named by police as the knifeman behind the Sydney mall stabbing attack.
They had “no issue” with Scott shooting their son, saying she was only doing her job to protect others and hoped she was coping alright.
