Bondi Junction Westfield stabbing: Quick-thinking father praised as he puts eye masks on his children to prevent them from witnessing the unfolding horror

A father seen escorting his two children away from the scene of a mass stabbing has been praised for his quick thinking that ensured his children did not witness the carnage.

Police were called to Westfield shopping center in Sydney’s Bondi Junction after reports a man with a knife stabbed shoppers at 3.30pm on Saturday.

Witnesses say the dark-haired, bearded man chased and slashed at shoppers as he went on a wild rampage, killing six and injuring seven before he was shot dead by police.

Camera crews at the scene showed the father and his two young children wearing eye masks.

The little detail was noticed by a woman on X who called the move ‘bloody amazing’.

Police were called to Westfield in Sydney’s Bondi Junction at 3.30pm on Saturday after reports of a man stabbing shoppers.

Six shoppers were killed in the attack and seven others, including a baby, were injured

‘That man covered their eyes so they wouldn’t see the horrors of what just happened,’ she wrote.

The man held both children close to him as he calmly walked away from the mall.

Many shoppers have been left traumatized after seeing victims lying in pools of blood.

Among the dead is Sydney’s mother Ash Good, 38, who threw her injured infant as a bystander in an attempt to save her life.

The baby is undergoing surgery and it is believed the two were the first to be attacked by the suspected attacker.

NSW Police Assistant Superintendent Anthony Cooke said the alleged attacker was confronted by a lone female officer on the fifth level of the complex.

‘She confronted the perpetrator, who by this time had moved to level five. As she continued walking quickly behind him to catch up, Commissioner Cooke said.

‘He turned around, faced her, raised a knife. She discharged a firearm and that person is now dead.’

The alleged attacker was shot dead by a lone policewoman as the injured were taken to hospitals

Shoppers inside the complex at the time of the incident said they feared for their lives while the knifeman was on the loose.

Police – including the tactical operations unit – and ambulances attended the scene where people were seen screaming and crying in front of the shopping centre.

The alleged attacker was wearing a green and gold ARL Australia shirt while casually holding a knife at his side as witnesses claim he began chasing them.

Photos and videos of the incident have been uploaded on X, including one that shows the alleged attacker casually riding an escalator while holding a large knife.

One photo showed one of the victims of the attack lying in a pool of blood behind a glass door.

A NSW Ambulance spokesman said 40 resources were sent to assist at the scene.

“NSW Ambulance assisted in transporting eight patients to various hospital facilities across Sydney and assessed a total of six patients who were deemed to be injured at the scene,” they said.

A young witness who was holed up in a shop said she heard gunshots and ‘blood curdling’ screams while the attack was underway.

“We are absolutely terrified,” she said.

Photos and videos of the incident have been shared online showing the bearded man wearing an ARL shirt running around the shopping complex and allegedly slashing innocent bystanders.

A young witness who was locked in a shop said she was ‘absolutely terrified’