Chilling second Bondi Beach gunman Sajid Akram stops taking pictures to place his GLASSES on as harmless beachgoers flee for his or her lives
Eerie footage has surfaced of the 50-year-old Bondi Beach gunman pausing mid-shooting to put on his glasses as beachgoers ran for their lives.
At least 16 people were left dead after a father and son allegedly opened fire at the world-famous beach on Sunday night where a Jewish Hanukkah celebration was underway.
The two gunmen stood on a footbridge connecting Campbell Parade to the Bondi Pavilion, firing shots into a crowd as people screamed and sprinted for cover.
Newly-surfaced footage captured the moment 50-year-old shooter, Sajid Akram, took cover on the footbridge, after rounds of gunfire, to put on his glasses.
The gunman, father of his alleged accomplice Naveed Akram, 24, then picked up a bag and moved away from the exposed footbridge, using the low wall for cover.
It was a chilling moment of reprieve in the bloody onslaught that left more than 40 people injured and drew immediate comparisons to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
Sajid was shot dead by police at the scene, while his son, an out-of-work bricklayer, was rushed to hospital under police guard in a critical condition.
Most of the victims are yet to be formally identified; however, police believe their ages range between ten and 87.
Pictured is the moment Sajid Akram took cover on the footbridge to put on his glasses
The 50-year-old father from Sydney’s west was shot dead at the scene by police
Naveed Akram, 24, was rushed to hospital under police guard with critical injuries
The first victim to be identified following the attack was Rabbi Eli Schlanger, an assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi and a father and husband.
While the backgrounds of the alleged gunmen, and their motives, are still coming into view, the pair are understood to have lived together at a home in Bonnyrigg, in Sydney’s west.
They were staying at an address in Campsie in the lead-up to the terror attack. Police have raided both properties.
The mother of the 24-year-old alleged gunman told the Sydney Morning Herald he worked as a bricklayer until his business went under about two months ago.
He told relatives he and his father, who was shot dead at the scene, were taking a trip to the NSW south coast to go fishing and swimming ahead of the deadly shooting.
NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters on Monday morning Sajid, the 50-year-old gunman, had been a licensed firearms holder for the past decade.
‘He has six firearms licensed to him. We are satisfied that we have six firearms from the scene yesterday,’ he said.
While police have yet to confirm the motives behind the attack, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described it as an ‘act of evil antisemitism, terrorism, that has struck the heart of our nation’.
Bystanders gather outside the Bonnyrigg home of the alleged gunmen on Sunday evening
Sydney’s most iconic beach descended into chaos following the mass shooting
The shooters were seen close to the Chanukah by the Sea festival, where Jewish Sydney residents gathered to celebrate the first evening of the Jewish holiday.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, meanwhile, said it was ‘a day burned in the nation’s soul’ and Australia’s darkest day since the Port Arthur massacre.
Mike Burgess, director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) said the national terrorism threat level remained at probable.
He confirmed one of the suspects was known to the agency, but did not specify which man.
‘One of these individuals was known to us, but not in an immediate-threat perspective, so we need to look into what happened here,’ he said.
