Matt Shirvington questions whether there was adequate security at Bondi Junction Westfield before deadly mass killings
The shock of what happened at Bondi Junction Westfield on Saturday afternoon was turning to anger on Sunday as questions arose about how a man could stab six people to death.
Sunrise host Matt Shirvington told viewers he could sense the change in mood as he spoke to locals gathered outside the mall about Joel Cauchi’s murderous rampage.
“People (are) asking why,” Shirvington colleague Michael Usher told back in the Network Seven studio.
‘How can this guy carry a knife into a busy mall where we know there’s security and just start stabbing people?’
Sunrise presenter Matt Shirvington (above) said questions were being asked to be answered about how lone knifeman Joel Cauchi killed six people at Bondi Junction Westfield. Two security guards were reportedly among those stabbed to death
Police were called to Bondi Junction Westfield at 3.20pm on Saturday after 40-year-old Cauchi began chasing men, women and children with a knife.
He stabbed four women – believed to be aged between 20 and 55 – and a man in his 30s to death before the first police officer on the scene, Inspector Amy Scott, shot and killed him.
Two of those killed were security guards who had been on duty at the time of the attacks.
A fifth woman, Ashlee Good, died of her injuries in hospital. Dawn Singleton, the 25-year-old daughter of multi-millionaire John Singleton, was among the dead.
Twelve others – including nine women, two men and Ms Good’s nine-month-old bay Harriet – who suffered stab wounds were treated by paramedics and taken to various Sydney hospitals.
Cauchi, who had been treated for schizophrenia, moved from Queensland to Sydney just a month ago and was known to police in his home state.
“We don’t fully understand what happened between last month in Queensland and here in NSW and what kind of treatment he potentially received, if any at all,” Shirvington said.
“So questions are being asked about it.
‘People are asking why,’ Shirvington told his colleague Michael Usher back in the Network Seven studio. ‘How can this guy carry a knife into a busy mall where we know there’s security and just start stabbing people?’ The police are pictured at the scene
‘Questions are also being asked about the protocols and whether there was sufficient security. That is the second question. But it is something that will obviously be investigated further down the track.’
Usher agreed with his colleague that there were questions to be answered about security arrangements and the handling of Cauchi’s mental health.
“I think it’s legitimate,” he said. ‘I questioned it last night when I watched it all. I mean there are security guards everywhere these days.’
Security expert Scott Taylor told Shirvington there would be ‘much more discussion’ about the effectiveness of protective measures in shopping centers following Saturday’s deaths.
Taylor believed that individual shopkeepers in Westfield had saved ‘several’ lives by locking customers in their doors and closing shutters.
“The actions of the traders were just unbelievable,” he said.
Cauchi stabbed four women – believed to be aged between 20 and 55 – and a man in his 30s to death before the first police officer on the scene, Inspector Amy Scott, shot and killed him.
Taylor said some retail employees would have received training on lockdowns and drilled for potential attacks by armed offenders.
“We hope we never have to deal with this kind of thing, but that’s one of the reasons we spend so much time on it,” he said.
‘It will spark some more conversations and actions. Some more communication and awareness I think would be beneficial.’
TheWSTNews Australia has attempted to contact Westfield’s owner Scentre Group, whose CEO Elliott Rusanow issued a brief statement on Saturday evening.
“Scentre Group extends its deepest and deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of those affected by today’s tragedy at Westfield Bondi,” Rusanow said.
‘We express our deep appreciation for the quick and brave action of our team and first responders.
“Our team continues to provide full assistance to the NSW emergency services response.”
A woman lays flowers at a temporary shrine being formed outside Bondi Junction Westfield in the wake of Saturday’s mass stabbing
Bondi Junction Westfield has been the scene of a number of tragic deaths in recent years.
Retired barber Bernard ‘Butch’ Gore was found dead in a fire escape 21 days after he arranged to meet his wife at the mall for lunch in January 2017.
An autopsy revealed the 71-year-old, who had dementia, suffered no obvious traumatic injury.
A coroner later found that the ‘psychological, environmental and physiological stressors’ experienced by Mr Gore while stuck inside the stairwell were ‘possible significant contributors to his death’.
These factors, together with ‘identified deficiencies and inadequacies associated with the efforts to locate Bernard’ led to the conclusion that Mr Gore’s death was not solely due to natural causes but the result of an accident.
When Mr. Gore didn’t meet his wife at the mall, she searched his favorite spots before calling the police.
That same evening, the couple’s daughter visited Westfield and gave two security officers information about her father.
CCTV footage was viewed and security officers searched the mall area, including lifts, escalators, toilets, dock areas and waste rooms – but not the fire escape.
In April 2020, a man plunged to his death at Bondi Junction Westfield after jumping a railing in what police believed to be a suicide.
A month later, another person died after falling over a barrier on the mezzanine level.