Joel Cauchi, 40, was known to police, said Cooke, who did not provide details. He attacked people in a busy shopping center in the Bondi Junction area. Six of them died. A young child of the deceased woman is one of the seven seriously injured.
A policewoman who happened to be in the area by herself quickly took action and shot him dead in the shopping center.
In this video, an eyewitness says she feared for her life:
The slain perpetrator Cauchi is said to have been in Sydney for a month. His motive remains unclear, but Cooke said it is unlikely to be a terrorist attack.
Police are still investigating whether he knew his victims or whether he chose them at random. Mourners laid flowers at the Bondi Junction shopping center this morning.
