A Frenchman who tried to stop a deadly stabbing attack at a Sydney shopping center has been promised an Australian visa.
Damien Guerot has been labeled a hero after footage of him confronting knifeman Joel Cauchi with a bollard during Saturday’s attack went viral.
Joel Cauchi killed six people and injured 12 others before being shot dead by a police officer.
The attack in Bondi, which police say targeted women, horrified the nation.
Amid the outpouring of grief across the country this week, there was also a push to grant Geurot – whose visa expires in a month – the right to remain in the country.
Prime Minister Antonio Albanês said he will ensure that Guerot – who has been nicknamed “Bollard Man” by some – has no problems renewing his visa.
“I say this to Damian… you can stay as long as you want,” he said at a news conference on Tuesday.
“This is someone we would welcome if he became an Australian citizen, although it would obviously be a loss for France. We thank him for his extraordinary bravery.”
The scene of Mr. Guerot in a white T-shirt confronting Cauchi on an escalator was broadcast around the world. The video shows him wielding a plastic stick to defend himself.
Guerot says he and a friend, Silas Despreaux, both construction workers, sprang into action without thinking – acting on pure adrenaline.
“We just saw him coming… we were thinking, ‘We need to try to stop him,'” Guerot said in an interview with Australian TV network Channel Seven on Sunday.
Cauchi then turned and fled up the escalator, with the pair in pursuit.
“We tried to maybe throw him the bollard, but we couldn’t. [get him]”, said Guerot.
Grabbing a chair, he ran after Cauchi on the next level. At this time, a police officer was also after Cauchi, and the men directed Inspector Amy Scott to her target. When he attacked her with the knife, she shot him to death.
Police are now investigating how and why Cauchi, who is from Queensland state, committed such violence.
He lived itinerantly for several years and was first diagnosed with a mental illness at age 17, Queensland Police said.
New South Wales police said on Monday it appeared “obvious” he was targeting women, who accounted for five of the six people killed.
The attack – in one of the country’s largest and most popular shopping centers – shocked Australia, where mass murders are rare.
Flags across the country were raised, candles at the Opera House were lit in honor of the victims and crowds of mourners gathered at Bondi Junction to leave flowers, teddy bears and cards.
