Everything we know about the father and son who are the alleged Bondi Beach shooters

Yesterday, two shooters launched an attack on Bondi Beach in Syndey. 15 people were killed and dozens more injured, after two men fired shots relentlessly in the direction of the beach.

At around 18:47 local time (07:47 GMT), New South Wales Police received reports that a number of shots had been fired at Archer Park, Bondi Beach. Footage began to spread of the incident, showing the horror of what had happened. Further footage showed a man hailed a local hero, who tackled one of the gunmen to the ground.

The gunfire took place at a Jewish celebration, and the shooting is being treated as a terrorist incident. A large group had gathered to celebrate the Jewish festival of Hanukah. Bomb disposal experts also removed two active improvised explosive devices (IEDs) from the scene. Police said on Monday a third IED was located at Bondi.

A 10-year-old was among those killed, and the ages of the victims ranges from 10 to 87. A further 42 people are in hospital. Here’s what we know so far about the two men accused of being the Bondi Beach shooters.

via JOANNA KORDINA/EPA/Shutterstock

The alleged Bondi Beach shooters are a father and son

After the news of the attack broke, local media named one of the alleged shooters as Naveed Akram, a man from the city’s south-west. According to local reports, an anonymous official said Mr Akram’s home in the suburb of Bonnyrigg was being raided by police on Sunday evening.

Most Read

UK universities resorting to selling off whole campuses during financial struggles

Tom Holland speaks out about Zendaya as Robert Pattinson ‘engagement’ pic goes viral

Explaining TikTok’s ‘Turn the Lights Off’ trend, and what it’s got to do with vibey Jon Hamm

Police then said that the gunmen behind the attack were father and son. Police did not release names, but the alleged shooters were named by local media as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram. They are aged 50 and 24.

Father Sajid Akram is said to have been a licensed firearms holder, as he met the eligibility criteria for a recreational hunting licence. He was linked to six firearms, and all of these are believed to have been used in the Bondi Beach attack.

According to the BBC, Sajid Akram arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa. Home Minister Tony Burke has confirmed this, but did not specify where he arrived from. The visa was transferred in 2001 to a partner visa, and later a resident return visa. His son Naveed Akram is an Australian-born citizen. He is said to have been known to authorities since October 2019.

Prime Minister Albanese said Naveed Akram had been “examined on the basis of being associated with others, and the assessment was made that there was no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence”.

NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon suggested one of the shooters was known to authorities but “the person that we know has very, very little knowledge to the police”. He said: “So he’s not someone that we would have automatically been looking at at this time.” ABC reports that counter terrorism police believe the gunmen had pledged allegiance to the IS terrorist group.

Until recently, Naveed Akram had been working as a bricklayer. However, according to The Guardian, a couple of months ago, Naveed reported to his bosses that he’d broken his wrist while boxing, and would not be able to work again until 2026.

The boss, who has remained anonymous, said they did not know Naveed well, saying he’d employed dozens of people at the same time, but he was considered a quiet person.

via SWNS

One alleged gunman has died, the other remains in hospital

Sajid Akram died at the scene after being shot by police. His son, Naveed Akram, is in a critical condition in hospital. Police believe the gunmen had prepared for the attack at a short-term rental property around a 30-minute drive from Bondi Beach.

This news story is evolving. For more, like The Tab on Facebook. Featured image via SWNS and MICK TSIKAS/EPA/Shutterstock.