Image source, Rohan Anderson
The man who went on a stabbing rampage in a Sydney shopping center appears to have targeted women, police say.
Joel Cauchi, 40, caused panic at the crowded Westfield Bondi Junction complex on Saturday when he started stabbing people with a long blade.
Five of the six people who died were women. Several other people, including a baby, were injured.
The New South Wales Police Commissioner told Australia’s ABC News it was “obvious” Mr Cauchi was focusing on women.
The man killed was security guard Faraz Tahir, 30, who was trying to intervene in the attack.
“The videos speak for themselves, don’t they?” Commissioner Karen Webb told ABC News Breakfast.
“It’s obvious to me, it’s obvious to the detectives… that the offender focused on women and avoided men.
“We don’t know what was operating in the offender’s mind and that’s why it’s important now that detectives spend as much time interviewing those who know him.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also told ABC News on Monday that “the gender distribution is, of course, concerning.”
Authorities previously said the attack was most likely “related to the mental health” of Cauchi, who was shot and killed Saturday by a lone police officer.
He was already known to police but had never been arrested or charged in his home state of Queensland. He had been living on the move for several years and was first diagnosed with mental illness at 17, Queensland Police said.
The attack – in one of the country’s largest and most popular shopping malls – shocked Australia, where mass killings are rare.
Flags across the country will be flown at half-mast on Monday and the sails of the Sydney Opera House will be lit up in tribute to the victims.
Crowds of mourners also gathered at Bondi Junction, leaving flowers and cards for those killed in the attack.
Ashlee Good, 38, was stabbed while trying to protect her nine-month-old baby daughter, who was also injured and underwent emergency surgery. She is now stable and doing well, the family said on Sunday.
Police also named architect Jade Young, 47, and Pikria Darchia, 55, as victims, while Dawn Singleton, 25, was identified by local media.
The Chinese consulate in Sydney said the fifth victim, the only one not named, was a Chinese citizen.
