PM hails ‘extraordinary bravery’ of foreigner who confronted Sydney mall knifeman
PUBLISHED : 16 Apr 2024 at 18:24
SYDNEY – Australia has invited a French nationwide who confronted a knife-wielding attacker in a Sydney mall to remain within the nation completely, heeding calls from the general public who had hailed him as a hero who deserved citizenship.
A video of Damien Guerot, a development employee, confronting the assailant Joel Cauchi with a bollard throughout Saturday’s assault in Sydney went viral on social media.
Six individuals have been killed and 12 wounded within the assault on the beachside mall, one of many metropolis’s worst violent crimes lately. Cauchi, who police stated appeared to have been focusing on girls, was shot and killed by Inspector Amy Scott, who confronted him solo throughout his rampage.
As town mourned the victims and cheered the heroes who emerged from the incident, there have been rising calls to provide Guerot, whose visa expires in a month, the appropriate to stay within the nation.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated Guerot was welcome to remain.
“You’re welcome to remain for so long as you want,” Albanese informed a press convention, in reply to a query about his heroics.
“That is somebody who we might welcome changing into an Australian citizen, though that might after all be a loss for France. We thank him for his extraordinary bravery,” he stated.
Reuters couldn’t attain Guerot for a response to the prime minister’s feedback.
Movies circulating on social media present Guerot, carrying a white T-shirt and black trousers, standing on the prime of an escalator holding up a bollard and making an attempt to throw it at Cauchi.
Albanese stated his act prevented the perpetrator from getting on to a different ground and doubtlessly inflicting additional carnage.
One other video confirmed him chasing behind Inspector Amy Scott, who shot the attacker lifeless, holding a chair as a possible weapon.
Guerot who spoke to Channel Seven earlier this week stated he was on his solution to the fitness center when the assault began. He and his buddy, Silas Despreaux, have been simply performing on adrenaline, he stated.
“I don’t know, we simply (thought) we have to do one thing to catch him,” Guerot stated. “You can not suppose in that second, it’s adrenaline.”
His heroics was shortly adopted by an internet petition calling for Guerot to be granted Australia citizenship, describing his actions as “a real act of Australianism” that saved lives.
In a social media put up, French President Emmanuel Macron hailed Guerot and Despreaux as “true heroes” for his or her actions in the course of the Sydney mall assault.
“Very nice delight and recognition,” he stated on X.
