MANILA: The Philippines officials confirmed that the father and son who carried out the deadly attack on Bondi Beach visited the country in November on Indian passports.
According to BBC report quoting Philippines’ immigration bureau, the two alleged Bondi gunmen travelled to the Philippines on 1 November and left on 28 November.
Sajid Akram, 50, travelled using an Indian passport, while his son, Naveed, 24, used an Australian passport, immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval revealed.
They declared the southern city of Davao as their final destination in the country and their return flight to Australia was for Sydney, he said.
Davao is a sprawling metropolis on the east of the Philippines’ main southern island, Mindanao. Islamist militants have been known to operate in impoverished parts of central and south-western Mindanao.
Moreover, the Philippine military says it could not immediately confirm reports that the two had “military-style training” as had previously been reported, while they were in the country.
Bondi Beach shooter is Indian, says his colleague
Yesterday, the gunman, Naveed Akram, who carried out the deadly shooting at Bondi Beach, is of Indian origin, his colleague revealed.
Speaking to a reporter, the man said that the shooter who killed 15 people at a Jewish celebration in Sydney’s Bondi Beach is an Indian. The colleague further said that his father is of Indian origin, whereas his mother is of Italian origin.
The devastating Bondi Beach terror attack sparked a wave of misinformation, which led to anti-Pakistan sentiment. Initial false claims quickly attempted to link the shooters to Pakistan.
This fake story is propagated by social media profiles, which are usually powerful. This move added to an anti-immigrant and Islamophobic twist.
These initial reports have, however, been disapproved of by official police confirmations.
The officers of the NSW Police recognized the suspects as father and son. Sajid Akram, aged 50, and Naveed Akram, aged 24, lived in the south-west of Sydney.
Bondi Beach attack
It is pertinent to mention here that two alleged gunmen who killed 15 people at a Jewish celebration in Sydney’s Bondi Beach were a father and son, police said on Monday, as Australia mourned victims of its worst gun violence in almost 30 years.
The father, a 50-year-old, was killed at the scene, taking the death toll to 16, while his 24-year-old son was in critical condition in the hospital, police said at a press conference on Monday. Officials have described the shooting on Sunday as a targeted antisemitic attack.
Forty people remain in hospital following the attack, including two police officers who are in a serious but stable condition, police said. The victims were aged between 10 and 87.
