NSW Police say they will charge a 60-year-old man, who is accused of indiscriminately firing shots along a street in Sydney’s inner-west, with a string of offences.
The shots rang out between 7.45pm and 9.30pm on Sunday from a unit in Croydon Park. Bystanders, cars and police were fired on up to 50 times, resulting in numerous people being injured and damage to premises and vehicles.
Streets were closed and the area was placed in lockdown as police launched a major operation after reports of a man indiscriminately firing at motorists, including police cars, travelling along Georges River Road.
Tactical police arrested the alleged gunman in his unit above a business along the busy road, after an exchange of gunfire.
On Monday morning, shattered glass and windows riddled with bullet holes remained along the small shopping strip, with numerous vehicles and premises sustaining damage. Police remained at the site, scouring the area for clues.
Paramedics treated 16 people at the scene for minor injuries, some of whom were injured by shattered glass as their windows were hit by the bullets, and others were treated for shock.
On Monday afternoon, acting superintendent Stephen Parry said one person had undergone surgery at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital earlier that day, and that two people in total had been treated and released from hospital.
Investigators are still seeking a motive for the shooting. Source: AAP / Sitthixay Ditthavong
Parry said there had been an “exchange of gunfire” between tactical police and the alleged gunman before his arrest at his unit, where the shots were believed to have come from, and a 30-calibre rifle had been recovered from the scene.
Parry told reporters that the alleged gunman had been taken to Bankstown Hospital for treatment of “minor” injuries he sustained during the arrest, and had since been released.
He was returned to custody at Burwood police station and would be charged with a number of offences, some related to firearms, that afternoon. Parry said that the man had been “speaking freely with police”.
Police said up to 50 bullets had been shot during the late-night spree. Source: AAP / Sitthixay Ditthavong
Parry said a motive for the shooting is still unclear. He said the alleged gunman had no criminal history, and doesn’t have any links to organised crime or terrorist association.
He emphasised the “random” nature of the shooting’s targets, saying that in the more than three decades he’d been in the police force, he’d seen very few similar instances.
Parry said the operation was “highly dangerous” and police had put themselves at “serious risk of death or injury”.
— With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press