Knifeman caught with a milk crate
A WOMAN was killed and another taken to hospital after a man brandishing a large kitchen knife went on a stabbing rampage in Sydney’s Central Business District yesterday.
In a statement, the Consulate General of China in Sydney confirmed that the woman who was injured in the attack was a Chinese national.
She was now said to be in a stable condition.
With multiple streets in lockdown as detectives combed through numerous crime scenes, New South Wales State Police Commissioner Mick Fuller told reporters the “terrifying carnage” began at around 2pm.
“We received multiple phone calls about a 21-year-old man in the vicinity of King Street armed with a knife, wearing a balaclava,” he said.
“The man has stabbed a 41year-old woman in the back and that appears to be a random attack.”
“During the next 30 minutes, an expanded crime scene has also identified a 21-year-old woman ... in a unit block in Clarence Street, deceased.”
“All of the available information that we have at hand would link these two crimes.”
With the accused attacker now in custody, footage posted on social media showed the man yelling and waving the large knife, before being apprehended by members of the public.
In the video, the assailant jumped on top of a car and faced off with a member of the public who used a chair to defend himself.
Later, bystanders including a firefighter used implements such as chairs and a milk crate to restrain the offender before authorities arrived on the scene.
Offering his gratitude to the heroic Sydneysiders who intervened to stop the alleged attacker, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison took to social media to praise their actions.
“The violent attack that took place in Sydney this afternoon is deeply concerning,” he said.
“The attacker is now in police custody following the brave actions of those who were present at the scene and were able to restrain him.
“Five or six others were chasing him behind, trying to stop him, they caught him and restrained him” in front of two popular cafes in the heart of the city, witness Megan Hales said.
Four of the pursuers were Colombian-born Alex Roberts and Britons Lee Cuthbert and brothers Paul and Luke O’Shaughnessy, colleagues at a recruitment consultancy.
Paul O’Shaughnessy, a 37year-old former professional footballer who played for the English club Bury, said:
“We just finished lunch. My brother opened the window and he said, ‘Mate, there’s a guy wielding a knife’.”
(Agencies)