To feel very sad about what happened in Bondi today

[margolyes]

Only posting here as no other post that I could see. 7 people dead. He stabbed a 9 month old baby. The baby's mum passed it to someone else . Mum has just died. WHat the feck is wrong with people? Thank goodness a police inspector went in on her own and shot him. So sad. It's where my family grew up and just a normal part of Australia. Hate to say it but the world is awful.

Just awful. I live in Sydney and we know one of the victims (not been named yet so I won't say anything else). I'm just so sad - it's horrific.

*ideation

And we k is so many other people who were there or had just left. The death toll would have been much higher had the man not stopped the killer on the escalator. He was stopping him with a bollard. What a hero. And the mean who ran in step to back up the police inspector. Heros.
We are heartbroken.

I’m just grateful the monster didn’t have a gun. Imagine how much worse it would be if we didn’t have the strict gun laws.

cowardly piece of shit stabbing a baby. I almost wish he had of survived to face abit of prison justice.

💔

Yes.
To pp , who asked why people are saying "it was just a normal shopping centre"; the reason is that it was so normal.
It wasn't a political rally, a rave , a pub, a music festival etc : where there is a teensy possiblilty of someone going crazy on drugs.
It wasn't outside a political building, or a medical centre, or a court.
It wasn't an outrageous movie being screened or a speech by someone who has enemies.
It was just a place where people go to do the shopping.
And to reply to another pp. One man stood at the top of an escalator and held a plastic bollard in front of him to stop the attacker from moving to another floor ( I'm not sure but I think pressed the emergency stop on the escalator as well ). Fucking hero. Held the attacker up for many valuable minutes.

It's tragic. Especially the mother who lost her life while out with her young child. I saw the story on the news last night briefly but I've just seen more on twitter and it's just made me so sad. Terrible for anyone who has been affected by the monster that did this.

Are these stories making anyone else feel worried? I'm a parent and it's scary to think I could just go about my day with my child and may not come home again. Feels like life is less and less safe each day

The killer has been named and plenty of background information shared, in Australian/Sydney newspapers.

Terrible news. Facebook has a page about the Police officer.
I feel this has invaded her privacy. She needs space and time to heal.
So brave to have confronted him alone.
Prayers to all families affected.

He backed away from alot of men who were holding their ground. Why did he do that? 5 out of the 6 were women. Plus he attacked a young baby. Looks like he's a coward and attacked women and a baby who were more vulnerable.

I would say this is a gender based attack. Wouldn't surprise me if he was an incel

God this is all so heartbreaking. Thank God the baby is stable. I can’t get over how a person’s entire life and world can be wiped out in an instant - both the victims and their families.

Well there’s a mental health element at play but I do wonder. All the odd/mentally ill men who have approached me in public seem to not be unwell enough to approach other men, particularly youngish or strong looking ones.

The perpetrator had schizophrenia. Diagnosed at 17yo. He had a fascination with knives. No criminal history.

Utterly heartbreaking.
I think the world has gone mad.
Ukraine
The Middle East
Lone wolf attackers
Knife crime
People zombified by drugs.

I was surprised at how many men just ran away. I know that my DH would have rugby tackled him to the ground.

I do wonder when this type of thing happens, whether the offender might have a brain injury or something. My neighbour had a condition where he hallucinated and saw monsters and aliens etc. I like to think it's that, rather than someone just being evil for the sake of it.

Severe mental illness can cause exactly those types of visualisations. My Mum had schizophrenia and at one point she was convinced my Gran and Dad were Russian spies sent to try and poison her. The mind is a really powerful and dangerous thing.

Has your DH been in this situation before? Otherwise you can’t possibly know what he would do.

I don’t think it’s fair to put people down for not willingly going near an attacker.

Well done to the man on the escalator though.

I agree. I also wouldn’t want dh to put himself in harms way. Sometimes the people who try to intervene get killed themselves.

Where have you seen he was known to the mother and baby? No media that I can see are saying this and neither are any of the families. Twitter doesn't count as they never get anything right. According to the idiots on twitter it was an Islamic attack, a Jewish attack and various people named who had absolutely nothing to do with it, I feel for those people!

Westfield Bondi mall attack: Sydney knife suspect identified by police - BBC News

This article has all the official updates, plus names victims who have been publicly identified by friends/family

There is nothing said that suggests he knew his victims.

He's from Queensland, and though known to the police there but never arrested or charged. MH issues since age 17, died age 40. No word on when he moved to Sydney (having lived as an itinerant in between) Police there have searched a his lock up and found nothing that sheds light on a motive.

No word on any of the other eight who were injured (except the baby, who is currently in ICU)

I don’t know where you’ve got this from. All the reliable news sources have said he was not known to any of the victims.

Unless your husband was in this exact situation you wouldn't know how he would react... this man apparently had a machete as long as his arm it would be human nature to run away from risk of immediate danger/death.... having a Y chromosome doesn't mean you are suddenly a superhero and willing to lay down your life... I think it's a very insensitive comment!

You think you know, but you don't know. Until you are in that situation no one really knows. To fear for your life, really fear in that split second, is like no other. To stare into the eyes of someone who wants to kill you.

Lots of men would say "oh I would do blah blah blah" but they've never faced a gun or a knife in their lives. They haven't a clue.

It's rather presumptuous to say your DH would do this - he's just as likely to be one of the ones running screaming.

You have no idea what you or your DH would do in that situation.

I witnessed a murder many years ago - I froze, literally froze to the spot whilst 3 people were stabbed. It's the most surreal experience ever to have a mundane Monday morning interrupted by something so horrific - your brain takes a while to even comprehend what is happening right in front of you. I think unless you're cornered and have no choice but to react the vast majority would remove themselves from the danger as soon as they could.

Those that intervene are extremely rare.