Six people were killed and 12 others injured by a knife attacker at a Sydney shopping center on Saturday. The fact that the disaster did not cause more victims is thanks to the heroes and heroines who stopped the attacker. One of them is the ‘Bollard Man’: a video of his intervention went viral.
The video, shared widely on social media, shows a man with a barrier in his hands confronting the knife attacker. The short video shows how the perpetrator wants to climb the stationary escalator, but stops when confronted by the determined-looking man (see X-Post below).
Construction workers intervened
He is the Frenchman Damien Guerot. The construction worker and his colleague Silas Despreaux were on their way to the fitness center at Westfield shopping center when the attacker was stabbed. They acted spontaneously.
“We wanted to stop him”
“We saw the man coming towards us and started running,” Guerot told Australia’s Channel 7. The two men grabbed the barrier posts, turned and followed the attacker. “We wanted to stop him,” the man said. There was a confrontation on the escalator. “His eyes were empty. “He wasn’t really there,” Guerot said, describing the shooter. Police say the man is 40-year-old Joel Cauchi. He was known to the authorities and suffered from mental illness.
Police officer shot perpetrator
Cauchi finally turned around, the two Frenchmen followed him and threw the bollards at him, but did not hit him. Police officer Amy Scotts was also on the trail of the attacker. When he tried to attack her with his knife, Scotts shot the perpetrator. “She is the real hero. She got the job done. We just did what we did, but nothing to be a real hero,” Guerot emphasizes.
In any case, the two Frenchmen probably saved lives with their intervention. They too are celebrated as heroes.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
