“We were positive we were going to die,” Victoria Kerr,29,who owns Hair Royale on level 5 at Bondi Junction Westfield,said on Sunday.
Inspector Amy Scott shot Joel Cauchi after he killed six people.Supplied
“She saved us from that serial killer.”
As Cauchi prowled the shopping centre armed with his 30-centimetre knife,and shoppers fled,Scott ran towards him.
Cauchi on an escalator inside Bondi Junction Westfield.Supplied
Kerr,her partner Bill Mohana,and six terrified clients were in tears huddled in the back room of the salon as they heard the gunshot that would end Cauchi’s life.
“We didn’t know it was the police shooting. I just ran to the back thinking we’re going to die,” Mohana said.
“I thought it was a terrorist attack. She’s put herself out there,by herself. What a woman.”
Witness Jason Dixon said the officer had no choice but to shoot.
“All she said was:‘Put it down.’ Just once. Then she shot him in the chest and he went down,” Dixon toldThe Daily Telegraph.
Mum Ash Good has been identified as one of the six victims of a stabbing spree inside a Bondi shopping centre.
“She had to shoot him because he just kept coming. He had a knife and he wasn’t going to stop.”
On Sunday,Premier Chris Minns was among those who paid tribute to Scott’s bravery.
He said she ran towards danger,and “without a shadow of a doubt,saved many,many lives”.
“The best in this state confronted one of the worst acts we’ve ever seen,” Minns said.
“The best in this state”:Premier Chris Minns was among those paying tribute to Scott.Dion Georgopoulos
Police Association president Kevin Morton said Scott is “content with what she had to do”.
“I spoke to her last night and again this morning,and she said,‘It was a night with not a lot of sleep’,” Morton toldThe Daily Telegraph.
“Everyone will be keeping an eye on her,obviously. There will be a lot of support from everyone.”
Scott is expected to be formally interviewed in the coming days.
She was recognised by the Rotary Club of Kings Cross in 2019,when she won the Demonstrated Courage and Devotion to Duty award.
Scott acted on instinct,Police Minister Yasmin Catley said on Sunday.
“We spoke about policing and how those instincts come straight into play. She went straight into gear.”
Catley said Scott paid tribute to the bystanders who rushed to her aid,saying they had really helped.
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