The parents of the Sydney stabbings attacker say they are “extremely sorry” after their son killed six people.
New South Wales Police identified the man behind the attack at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction on Saturday as Joel Cauchi, 40.
He was shot and killed by an officer after fatally stabbing six people – five women and one man – and injuring several others, including a nine-month-old baby.
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Speaking on Monday outside their home, Andrew Cauchi said he was “heartbroken” for the victims and “extremely sorry”.
The 76-year-old added: “I made myself a servant to my son when I found out he had a mental illness.
“He’s my son. And I’m loving a monster – to you, he’s a monster. To me, he was a very sick boy.”
New South Wales Police are looking into the possibility that Joel targeted women in the attack.
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Mr Cauchi suggested the reason his son – who suffered from schizophrenia – may have targeted women was because “he wanted a girlfriend”.
“He’s got no social skills and he was frustrated out of his brain,” he said.
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Michele Cauchi, Joel’s mother, also told reporters: “This is a parents’ absolute nightmare, when they have a child with mental illness, that something like this could happen.
“And my heart goes out to the people our son has hurt. If he was in his right mind, he would be absolutely devastated at what he’s done.
“But he obviously was not in his right mind. He’s somehow, had been triggered into a psychosis and he’d lost touch with reality.”
Sixth victim named
It comes after the sixth person who died in the attack was named as Yixuan Cheng.
The 25-year-old was from China and was studying for a master’s degree in economics at the University of Sydney, according to Sky News Australia.
Her name was confirmed by Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese.
