It started like a regular Saturday.
Hundreds of people flocked to a large shopping centre in Sydney’s east to buy groceries, clothes and other items.
But as the afternoon stretched on at the Westfield at Bondi Junction, an emergency incident began to unfold.
This is what we know about the mass stabbing that took place.
Warning: Some readers may find the following details of the attack, witness accounts and footage of the incident distressing.
The man behind the attack has been named by NSW Police as 40-year-old Joel Cauchi.
Cauchi moved to Sydney from Queensland “last month”. It’s understood that he was previously living in the “Brisbane area”.
Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cooke said the man had taken possession of a small storage facility in Sydney.
He said Cauchi had mental health problems and there was “no information” to suggest the attack was “driven by any particular ideology”.
“We know that the offender in the matter suffers from mental [ill] health,” Mr Cooke said.
“We are continuing to work through the profiling of the offender but very clearly to us at this stage it would appear that this is related to the mental health of the individual involved.”
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said that Cauchi was “not known criminally” but had “come to the notice of law enforcement” in NSW and Queensland for “mental health-related issues”.
Police have been in contact with Cauchi’s family, who are cooperating.
The victims
We know six victims — four women and one man — died at the scene.
A sixth, Sydney woman Ashlee Good, died later in hospital.
The women were aged between 20 and 55 and the man was in his 30s, according to police.
We know there were 12 other injured people in hospital. Four have since been discharged.
We know one of the injured victims is a nine-month-old child.
Two patients are at St Vincent’s Hospital. One man is in ICU in a stable condition and one woman is also in ICU in a stable condition.
A man and a woman are at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. The woman is in a critical but stable condition in ICU, while the man is in a stable condition.
One woman is in a stable condition at Prince of Wales Hospital, one woman is in a stable condition at St George Hospital and one woman is in ICU in a serious but stable condition at Royal North Shore Hospital.
The child is in a serious but stable condition at Sydney Children’s Hospital.
Police are working with the families of the victims. Two of the victims don’t have any family in Australia and officers are trying to reach them overseas.
And pieced together from what police and eyewitnesses have said, here’s what we know about how the incident unfolded:
As it happened
At 3:10pm, Cauchi arrived at the Westfield shopping centre at Bondi Junction.
It is unclear where he goes, but police say he leaves the centre “very shortly after”.
He returns 10 minutes later, at 3:20pm, and then begins to move through the centre, stabbing people.
Loading…
Panicked shoppers begin to notice and many make triple-0 calls, alerting police, who have now received multiple reports about an incident.
As this is happening, shoppers call out for others to run. Some escape the centre and others shelter in stores.
Another eyewitness, Vernon Michael, said he saw a man armed with a large knife walking “calmly” and riding an escalator to a higher floor.
Loading…
One person bravely stood at the top of an escalator and briefly held off the attacker.
Responding police units are on their way, but it is the actions of Inspector Amy Scott, who was already in the area, that bring the stabbing spree to an end.
Outside the shopping centre, people alert her to what is happening.
She enters the Westfield and makes her way towards where she believes the attacker is.
Officer confronts Cauchi
She tracks him and follows him to the fifth floor, walking “quickly behind him to catch up with him”, according to Assistant Commissioner Cooke.
“[The attacker] turned, faced her and raised a knife,” he said.
Inspector Scott shot Cauchi and he died at the scene. Police have not said how many shots were discharged but some witnesses say they heard three shots.
Shopping attendants lock down their stores with customers still inside and some help shoppers escape out exits in the back of storerooms.
By this stage, heavily armed police are at the scene and searching the area.
Reports there may be more than one offender turn out to be incorrect, with police later confirming that Cauchi was the sole attacker.
The officer who stopped the attack has been hailed a “hero” by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
She also been praised by NSW Premier Chris Minns and the police commissioner for her “professionalism” and her “courage and bravery”.
‘New South Wales will bounce back’
Chris Minns, who was overseas when the attack occurred, returned to the state today to speak about the matter.
“Many in the community will feel real anger. We’ll have to process that grief in the days ahead,” he said.
“But it’s very important to say that New South Wales will bounce back, we are a strong community.”
The premier also highlighted the efforts of first responders and the members of the public to save lives and protect others.
“The best in this state confronted one of the worst acts we’ve ever seen and we’re very, very grateful for the men and women that stood up in Bondi Junction,” he said.
A family liaison officer has been appointed to each of the victim’s families and mental health staff will be at Bondi today to provide support to the local community.
Posted , updated