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Final preparations are about to be made for a five-week inquest into a shopping mall rampage that killed six people, as the anniversary of the attack approaches.
Joel Cauchi, 40, also wounded at least 10 others in his stabbing spree at the busy Bondi Junction shopping centre in Sydney’s east on April 13, 2024.
Ashlee Good, 38, Dawn Singleton, 25, Jade Young, 47, Pikria Darchia, 55, Yixuan Cheng, 27 and security guard Faraz Tahir, 30, were killed during the three-minute onslaught.
The wounded victims who were hospitalised included a nine-month-old baby who was released after treatment.
Five-and-a-half minutes after the stabbing spree started, heroic NSW Police inspector Amy Scott fatally shot Cauchi on level five of the complex as shoppers fled.
An inquest by NSW State Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan will probe the circumstances surrounding the attack with the aim of preventing similar tragedies.
One of the questions to be considered is how Cauchi selected his victims, who were mostly women.
The inquest will also assess whether there were missed opportunities for intervention and whether there is room for improving emergency services responses.
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It is slated to run from April 28 to May 30, two weeks after the first anniversary of the attack.
The parties will convene at the Coroners Court today to iron out any last-minute issues and finalise arrangements.
The pre-inquest hearing comes days before a memorial to the victims of the stabbing attack is due to be unveiled at the shopping centre.
Photographs and messages collected from floral tribute sites and the candlelight vigil will be on display from April 10 to 16.
The public has been invited to visit and honour the victims at the memorial, which will be staffed by welfare support officers on April 12 and 13.