A 16-year-old boy was shot dead by police in Perth’s south after stabbing a civilian and calling the police to threaten them with more “acts of violence.” He did not identify himself or give specifics about where he was when he initially contacted Triple Zero but a second call alerted the police to someone brandishing a huge kitchen knife and “running around a car park.” When Western Australia Police arrived at a Bunnings parking lot in Willetton on 4th May night, shortly after 10 pm, they discovered the accused wielding a knife. Authorities were also notified by several onlookers of a potentially dangerous situation that was taking place on the High Street.
Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese also reacted to the incident and sent his condolences to the victims. He stated, “I have spoken with WA Premier Roger Cook this morning, and I thank the WA Police for acting swiftly to contain the incident.” The AFP Commissioner and the Director-General of ASIO also briefed him on the circumstances. He added, “I’m advised there is no ongoing threat to the community on the information available. We are a peace-loving nation and there is no place for violent extremism in Australia.”
Within minutes of receiving a tip, three police officers arrived at the area, per Western Australia Police Commissioner Col Blanch. They found a lone guy scuttling around the parking lot while carrying a big kitchen knife. According to him, when the youngster refused to lay down the knife as ordered and instead lunged at the officers, two officers tried to tase him. “Both of them didn’t have the full desired effect, and the male continued to advance on the third officer, who fired a single shot and fatally wounded the male,” Col Blanch informed during a press conference on 5th May.
After reviewing the bodycam footage of the officers, the commissioner declared that he was satisfied with how the response had been appropriate given the gravity of the danger. During the news conference, Western Australian Premier Roger Cook stated that although the adolescent seemed to have been “radicalised online” by extremist ideology, there was no indication that he belonged to any kind of network or group.
Furthermore, a man in his 30s with stab wounds in his back was discovered at the Bunnings parking lot and was taken to a hospital. He is in a stable condition now. Officials stated that until the teenager was shot, they were unaware of a victim. Other reports noted that the person who was stabbed was “doing well” and in a serious but stable condition in the hospital.
According to Commissioner Blanch, the perpetrator was brought to the attention of law enforcement in 2022 while participating in a de-radicalization (countering violent extremism) initiative aimed at combating violent extremist beliefs. Police contend that it is premature to consider the incident to be an act of terrorism until the attack’s reasons have been investigated, which is why it hasn’t been labelled as such. “It certainly has the hallmarks of one (a terrorist attack) and the reason why I would declare it as a terrorist act going forward, it’s about timing. Sometimes you’ll see terrorist acts being claimed very early or declared very early.”
He highlighted, “I believe this is a person acting alone. I don’t need additional capability at this time whilst it meets the criteria or at least the definition.” The police commissioner described the attacker as a “caucasian male.” Since another 16-year-old boy attacked an Assyrian Orthodox bishop and priest in a church on 15h April, police and operatives from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation have been conducting a counterterrorism investigation in Sydney, a city on the east coast.