‘Are you guy’s filming a movie?’: Bystander’s question sparks call for change as the heroes, near misses, and key failings from Bondi stabbing are revealed

“What’s going on here? Is this a movie or something. Are you guys filming a movie?” These questions were uttered just moments after shots rang out in a busy shopping centre, the shopper having watched as hero Inspector Amy Scott put an end to the near six minutes of terror unleashed by the knife-wielding killer Joel Cauchi. There had been nothing to alert shoppers to the terrible danger they were in as Cauchi roamed Westfield Bondi Junction, murdering Dawn Singleton, Yizuan Cheng, Faraz Ahmed Tahir, Ashlee Good, Jade Young and Pikria Darchia and injuring another 10 on April 13, 2024. One woman had even asked the killer “why is everyone running” before he stabbed her, with another brushing off people running as just being “silly” before she felt a thud in her back. Seeing Cauchi walk off with a knife that reminded her of the movie Crocodile Dundee, she realised she had been stabbed. A five-week coronial inquest into one of Australia’s worst massacres revealed shocking failures and near misses, with findings handed down by NSW Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan this week including calls for an advertising campaign of “Escape. Hide. Tell” messaging after many shoppers were unaware the attack was unfolding, with some filming the fatal attacks on their phones or pursuing Cauchi instead of removing themselves from danger. Her findings were not to be critical of any shoppers present that day, she said. A need to address systemic issues in the country’s mental health sector was also uncovered after a cascade of tragic evidence laid bare how Cauchi, who lived with schizophrenia, fell through the cracks. However moments of unbelievable courage, bravery, and heroism were also unearthed during the inquest, including a man who armed himself with a metal chair and rushed over after Ms Singleton was fatally stabbed, telling other bystanders: “I will fight him off for you guys if he comes back”. Footage has captured the moment a shopping centre employee was faced with Joel Cauchi just moments before the Bondi attack killer was shot. Hero cop thought she was ‘going to die’ The husband of Ms Young, Noel McLaughlin, similarly launched into action, warning others that Cauchi had a knife and asking the killer — who was less than a metre away from him — “What are you doing?” before rushing to be by his wife’s side. Mr McLaughlin will be recognised with a bravery award along with Ms Scott, “bollard men” Silas Despreaux and Damien Guerot if the coroner’s recommendation is accepted, with Ms Good also flagged for a posthumous award. Mr Tahir, who was excited to be working his very first shift as a security guard at the shopping centre, was in October 2024 awarded a posthumous Australian Security Industry Australian Security Medal of Valour Award along with his colleague Muhammad Taha, who survived after he too was stabbed by Cauchi while responding to the attack. The bravery of French nationals Mr Despreaux and Mr Guerot also warrants an honour, with the pair having thrown bollards at Cauchi after they ushered a woman — who had no idea Cauchi was lurking nearby — to safety. The pair, armed with a chair and shopping trolley, later led Ms Scott to the killer. The officer had been flagged down by people outside the centre who pleaded: “He’s killing people. You’ve got to help us. Please get in there.” Ms Scott said during the inquest she had resigned herself “to the fact that I was probably going to die” as she rushed into the centre. A heart-stopping near miss was revealed during her evidence as she spoke of having mouthed for a woman with a pram to “run” from her hiding spot behind a pot plant, which a stray bullet aimed at Cauchi hit just moments later. Fresh footage released during a coronial inquest has captured the moment the "bollard men" ran with Inspector Amy Scott, armed with a chair and trolley, towards killer Joel Cauchi before he ran at the officer. Mum says Cauchi ‘would not have coped’ with what he did Cauchi was psychotic on the day of the attack. Evidence heard by the inquest suggested his mental health began to decline in 2019, shortly after he was completely weaned off all psychotic medications by his psychiatrist, Andrea Boros-Lavack, at his request. Diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2001, Cauchi received exemplary care by Dr Boros-Lavack between 2012 up until the middle of 2019, as well as in the public system earlier in his life. Tragically, he slipped through the cracks of the mental health system after he moved from Toowoomba to Brisbane in 2020. His mother, Michele, said her son “wouldn’t have done what he did in Bondi Junction if he had been in his right mind”, and that if he had gone back on medication after his attacks “he would not have coped at all with what he had done”, evidence summarised in the findings state. The inquest heard she had raised concerns about her son’s declining health with Dr Boros-Lavack’s clinic several times after he stopped taking his medications, including by reporting that her son may have been hearing voices and was leaving notes that he was under “satanic control”. It was put to Dr Boros-Lavack during the inquest that Michele was “very well placed” to recognise signs of a relapse, to which the psychiatrist replied: “Michele is a beautiful, beautiful mother, but she is not a psychiatrist”. The inquest was also told that Dr Boros-Lavack did not mention Michele’s concerns in her letter of discharge for Cauchi after his move, with Ms O’Sullivan finding the letter should have had more information, but the psychiatrist wanted to believe Cauchi was well and minimised information that pointed against that. The psychiatrist’s determination Cauchi was not relapsing is a “major failing”, the coroner ruled, referring Dr Boros-Lavack to the Queensland’s Health Ombudsman for investigation. Disturbing web searches offer insight into killer’s state of mind His diminishing health was evidenced during the inquest by disturbing searches made on his phone from 2023 onwards, including “Last mass stabbing Australia”, “12 common traits of serial killers”, and “What things do people regret while dying?” Chillingly, he had made searches about the 1999 Columbine shooting the day he carried out the fatal attacks. Notes on his phone stating “Call knife sharpener and confirm it doesn’t need sharpening for mall use” and to “Check out malls and also where to run” were also found in the months before the attack, with Cauchi having tried to have his knife sharpened at an inner-west market in March 2024 before the stall worker turned him away as it was brand new and did not need sharpening. Cauchi was spotted as being “kind of flat” just two days before the attacks, with a volunteer at a Newtown charity reporting he had “very earnestly” told her “thank you for being so kind to me” on April 11, the findings state. “While there is ample evidence that Mr Cauchi had dark and violent thoughts in the months leading up to the attacks, and that his behaviour on 13 April was depraved, it was entirely out of character to the man he was when he was well,” counsel assisting the coroner submitted during the inquest. “It is tragic that he became so mentally unwell that he was driven by psychosis to commit the atrocities on April 13 2024, that led to the loss of so many innocent lives, and the injury … of so many more.” ‘Near miss’ in Bondi attack The declaration of the shopping centre as a “hot zone” – which prevents paramedics from entering areas under active threat – was ruled as a “near miss” by the coroner. The hot zone was not officially declared by NSW Ambulance until 4.28pm, just a minute after police had confirmed there was only one offender; this information was withheld. However paramedics arriving on the scene understood there may have been a second offender, with Inspector Brett Simpson and a group of paramedics very bravely going in at 3.42pm anyway. Critical Care Paramedic Chris Wilkinson lamented how he was forced to stay outside when he arrived shortly after 4pm. “There was too much emphasis on scene safety over saving the dying patients and it needs to change,” Mr Wilkinson said in his evidence. “I felt inadequate being forced to stay on the outside when I thought people may be (dying) on the inside.” Paramedics led by Mr Simpson were able to reach and treat victims, with the coroner ruling the declaration did not affect any patient outcomes. However the issue was a “near miss”, with Ms O’Sullivan stating it was fortunate no patients remained inside the centre when the declaration was made. A working group to address better inter-agency communication between emergency services was suggested among the 23 recommendations handed down by the coroner. Consideration of bringing in the Ten Second Triage — which helps first responders to rapidly triage patients — should be considered by the government after the inquest was told some paramedics were hesitant to move on as they were so committed to treating their patients on the day of the fatal attack. Outreach service tried to check on Cauchi day before murders The state government has also been asked to establish and support services for both short and long term accommodation for those experiencing mental health issues. The findings indicated that Randwick Council had arranged for a not-for-profit that helps with homelessness to check on Cauchi, who was sleeping rough at Maroubra Beach, the very day before the fatal attacks. However, he was not there when they arrived. A suite of mental health reforms were also suggested, including a review over whether people with psychotic illnesses should be given access to firearms after Cauchi was declared fit for a gun licence. Push after CCTV operations found lacking The coroner has also encouraged the shopping centre’s operator to mandate having two operators in the CCTV room at any given time, after it was revealed the sole staffer rostered to the room had gone to the bathroom just before Cauchi began his fatal attacks. The staffer, known only as CR1, had been flagged for “ongoing issues” in the months prior, including that she was responding too slow and needed retraining. She found CR1 was not equipped to carry out the critical duties required of her which she says the shopping centre operator Scentre Group and security contractor Glad Group “should have been aware” of. Ms O’Sullivan also accepted the wrong button was pressed, which displayed “evacuate” instructions across the centre rather than “escape, hide, tell”. The coroner has suggested the “escape, hide, tell” messaging be the subject of an advertising campaign in NSW, following on from promotion rolled out across the country last year. Alarms and public announcements also only commenced after Cauchi had been killed, the inquest found. Ms O’Sullivan acknowledged and welcomed that a series of changes were made by Scentre, Glad, and emergency services prior to her findings being handed down. Guidelines for reporting on mass casualty incidents were also proposed after the victims’ families spoke of being distressed by some publications and broadcasts. The husband of Jade Young, who was killed in the Westfield Bondi Junction massacre, has delivered a touching message of hope after a coroner ruled he should be considered for a bravery award. The findings state some journalists, who were not identified, sent Ms Singleton’s sister footage from the incident on social media. The victims’ families last year spoke of their “bone deep, soul crushing agony” after their loved ones were torn away from them, with Mr McLaughlin on Thursday expressing his hope the inquest will prevent others from experiencing the same grief as his. “The (inquest’s) evidence has shown that what first appeared to be a sudden and random act of violence was, in fact, the end point of a long story,” Mr McLaughlin said. “My hope now is that the findings and the recommendations are treated not as abstract lessons, but as practical obligations. These issues are not theoretical, they have consequences measured in human lives.”