NSW Police have confirmed a father-son duo were the perpetrators behind Sunday’s Bondi terrorist attack.
However, authorities have not named the suspects publicly.
On Sunday, two gunmen opened fire on a gathering at a Jewish community event in Bondi, killing 15 innocent people.
A 50-year-old gunman died at the scene, while his 24-year-old son is under police guard in hospital with critical injuries.
The older suspect was a licensed gun owner, while the younger one was known to federal security officials.
Background
The pair are alleged to have opened fire at a Jewish community event at Bondi Beach in Sydney’s east on Sunday night.
Hundreds had gathered to celebrate the start of the Jewish festival of Chanukah.
Police have declared the mass shooting a terrorist attack.
The death toll is 16, including 15 innocent people.
Shooters
Police claim a father-son duo carried out the terror attack, but have not confirmed their identities.
Following the shooting, investigators raided the suspects’ home in Bonnyrigg in Sydney’s west, along with a short-term accomodation site in Campsie.
NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon confirmed the older man was a licensed gun holder, and that the firearms used in Sunday’s attack were legally acquired.
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He owned six guns, all of which have been recovered from the scene in Bondi and the Campsie address, Lanyon said.
According to NSW Premier Chris Minns, the 50-year-old man had held a firearms licence since 2015.
His son remains in hospital under police guard.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed the 24-year-old was investigated by ASIO, the national spy agency, for six months in 2019.
“He was examined on the basis of being associated with others and the assessment was made that there was no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence,” Albanese said.
Gun laws
Australia’s state and territory gun laws were significantly reformed in 1996 after the Port Arthur massacre, where a single gunman killed 35 people in Tasmania.
In NSW, firearms licences are limited to people who live on rural properties, work as farmers or are part of gun clubs for activities such as hunting or clay target shooting.
Guns and ammunition must be stored separately and securely in locked containers that are “not easily penetrable”.
Albanese has vowed to look at gun law reform at a National Cabinet meeting this afternoon.
He said leaders will considering introducing new limits on the number of guns an individual can access, and timed reviews on gun licences.
Albanese said: “Licences should not be in perpetuity.”
Minns said he was considering recalling NSW Parliament, as the sitting period has finished for 2025.
