Dead Bondi beach gunman originally from Hyderabad, reveal Indian police

Indian police said on Tuesday that the dead gunman in Australia's Bondi beach shooting incident, Sajid Akram, was originally from the southern Indian city of Hyderabad but had limited contact with his family in India.

The attack on Sunday was Australia's worst mass shooting in nearly 30 years, and is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting the Jewish community.

Recommended For You

GCC tourism revenues hit $120b as UAE spurs travel boom

China's Q4 GDP growth slows to 3-year low, full-year pace meets official target

India's central bank proposes linking BRICS' digital currencies, sources say

Trump would quickly replace tariffs after court action, New York Times reports

No OTPs? UAE residents get in-app bank alerts as new rule goes into effect

 

The death toll stands at 16, including one of the gunmen, identified by police as 50-year old Sajid Akram, who was shot by police. The man's 24-year-old son and alleged accomplice, identified by local media as Naveed Akram, was in critical condition in hospital after also being shot.

Identity revealed

According to ANI, Sajid Akram completed his degree in Hyderabad and moved to Australia in search of work around 27 years ago, in November 1998. He later married Venera Grosso, a woman of European origin, and eventually settled permanently in Australia. The couple has two children: a son, Naveed (one of the attackers), and a daughter.

Hyderabad is the capital of Telangana state. The DGP of Telangana stated that Sajid Akram maintained only limited contact with his family in Hyderabad over the past 27 years. Since moving to Australia, he visited India six times, mainly for family matters such as property issues and to see his elderly parents. Reports indicate that he did not return to India even after his father’s passing.

"The family members have expressed no knowledge of his radical mindset or activities, nor of the circumstances that led to his radicalisation," Telangana state police said in a statement.

Telangana police said the factors that led to the radicalisation of the two gunmen "appear to have no connection with India or any local influence in Telangana".

There was no "adverse record" on him before he left India, the statement added.

Australian police said both men had travelled to the Philippines last month, the father on an Indian passport and the son was on an Australian one.

The purpose of the trip is under investigation, officials said, adding it was not conclusive they were linked to any terrorist group or whether they received training in that country.