Bondi Beach shooting: Dead gunman Sajid Akram’s Indian family unaware of radicalisation

Sajid Akram, the gunman killed in the shooting on Australia’s Bondi Beach, was originally from the southern Indian city of Hyderabad but had limited contact with his family in India, police said.

Sunday’s attack was Australia’s worst mass shooting in nearly 30 years and is being investigated as “an act of terrorism targeting the Jewish community.”

The death toll was 16, including one of the gunmen, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, who was shot by police.

The man’s 24-year-old son and alleged accomplice, Naveed Akram, was in critical condition in hospital after he was also shot.

“His family members have not provided any information about his radical mindset or activities or the circumstances that led to his radicalization,” Telangana State Police said in a statement. he said.

Hyderabad is the capital of Telangana state.

Australian police said both men traveled to the Philippines in November, the father on an Indian passport and the son on an Australian passport.

Authorities stated that the purpose of the trip was being investigated, adding that no definitive conclusion could be drawn as to whether these people were affiliated with any terrorist group or received training in that country.

Telangana Police said the factors that led to the radicalization of the two attackers “have no connection with India or any local influence in Telangana”.

Telangana Police said on Tuesday that Sajid Akram had visited India six times since migrating to Australia in 1998, mostly for family-related reasons.

The statement said there was “no negative record” about him before he left India.