Parramatta shooting: Police search mosque in shooting investigation
Updated earlier today at 2:00am
The Parramatta Mosque has been searched, a senior police source has told the ABC, as investigations into Friday's fatal shooting of a civilian police force employee continue.
Key points:
- Parramatta Mosque raided overnight, senior police source told ABC
- Mosque leaders gave full assistance to police in raid
- Raid was part of investigations into fatal shooting at Parramatta police HQ
- Shooter said to have attended a mosque shortly before attack
Farhad Jabar Khali Mohammad, 15, shot and killed 17-year police force veteran Curtis Cheng at close range outside the Parramatta police headquarters.
A senior police source told the ABC Farhad attended a mosque shortly before the shooting.
The mosque believed to have been searched overnight is a few blocks away from the site of the shooting that killed Mr Cheng, 58, as he left work at 4:30pm on Friday.
A senior figure at the Parramatta mosque has confirmed that police searched the mosque to look for a black backpack which they believe Farhad used to carry the gun he used to kill Mr Cheng.
Police said the warrant was undertaken by arrangement with leadership at the mosque, who gave their full assistance to police.
Earlier, a police source said the teenager had been armed with a revolver and did not know Mr Cheng.
After shooting Mr Cheng, Farhad fired at officers who emerged from the building to respond to the incident, but was killed when special constables returned fire.
Earlier, senior law enforcement sources said it appeared the teenager had acted alone.
"The people there (at the mosque) went looking for him after prayer," one source said.
"There is a fair bit of information that he acted alone."
They said after prayer he changed into a black robe.
Neil El-Kadomi from the Parramatta Mosque said Farhad visited the building in the past on occasion but he did not know him by name.
Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.
"Because he was very quiet nobody noticed him," Mr El-Kadomi said.
"He's not known in the mosque. He came to the mosque to heal himself before he did the crime, which is wrong."
Mr El-Kadomi said the mosque had nothing to do with the shooting and did not condone it.
"The boy, he did it alone. He died and his motive died with him," he said.
"You have to be an active person in society, you have to join others in building Australia.
"So, we don't agree with what happened in Parramatta.
"We've got nothing to do with it and I hate the linking of the mosque with the crime."
Shooter's relative tipped off police
The ABC was told by a senior police source that it was the older brother of the Parramatta shooter who tipped off them off about the identity of Farhad.
It is also understood Farhad's sister Shadi went missing on Thursday and flew out of Australia on a Singapore Airlines flight bound for Istanbul, and may be attempting to reach Iraq or Syria.
Her family told police she had taken all her belongings.
Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.
Police searched Farhad's North Parramatta home and confiscated computer equipment.
ABC's police source said the youth had been "carrying on" outside police headquarters for a few minutes before the shooting.
"He drew attention to himself to the extent some people caught it on their iPhones," they said.
The gunman walked past a plain clothes female detective.
"She was wearing a business suit and she wasn't carrying a gun," a source said.
"This poor bloke [the victim] was apparently the first one to walk out of the building — he had a connection to the police force — that was it."
Phone hook-up between Turnbull, Baird and Muslim leaders
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and NSW Premier Mike Baird have been holding talks with Muslim community leaders following the shooting.
Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.
Ms Bishop said the issue of radicalisation must be addressed.
"So we're certainly reaching out to the leaders of the Muslim community ... but working with the families at a grassroots local level ... it's the families that will be a frontline of defence against radicalised young people ... so we will be working very closely with them," she said.
The ABC's Fran Kelly told the Insiders program that a phone hook-up between "the Premier, the Police Commissioner and the Prime Minister with seven or eight members of the Muslim community" took place last night.
What we know about the gunman
- 15-year-old boy
- Iraqi-Kurdish background
- Born in Iran
- Actions believed to be politically motivated and linked to terrorism
- Believed to have been working alone
- Has family in Australia
- Resided in the Parramatta area
- Was not known to police and had no criminal history
She said Mr Turnbull used the phone call to convey the message that "we have a remarkably cohesive society, respect is key to that and [urged] everyone to work together to expose preachers of hate".
The ABC understands the community leaders were impressed by the move and communicated their willingness to work with governments. One leader said the conversation reset the relationship.
Muslim community leaders said they were shocked by the tragic shooting of Mr Cheng.
They called for more to be done to stop extremist leaders from recruiting vulnerable youths.
Sydney Muslim community leader Ahmad El-Hage said the Government only acted when extremist thoughts turn into acts of violence.
"And we tell them this is not correct we need to act way before that," he said.
Mr El-Hage said the Government needed to focus on the extremist leaders rather than the young people they target.
Youth worker Sheikh Wesam Charkawi, who works with high school boys to counter radical ideas, said the acts of one person should not reflect upon the broader Muslim community.
He also said some of the youth he worked with feel marginalised.
"Some of them in their families feel that there's a disconnect, some of them come from broken families and so there is an array of issues that can lead to criminality," Mr Charkawi said.
He said despite youth being impressionable and often naive, nothing could justify what the shooter did.
Relative known to police and counter-terrorism authorities
As part of their investigation, police are now trying to trace the ownership and history of the revolver used by Farhad in the attack.
The ABC has been told the youth had never come to the attention of police.
"We don't know anything about him," the source said.
But it is understood a relative was known to law enforcement or intelligence agencies.
"[The relative] was a bit of a problem, he did come to the attention of police and counter-terrorism [authorities]," a source said.
One source confirmed the teenager was a Sunni Muslim who was born in Iran.
He said he was of Iraqi-Kurdish background and may have been a refugee.
"It is interesting he is a Kurd, the Kurds are among those bearing the brunt of ISIS, it doesn't make any sense," the source said.
First posted yesterday at 5:39pm
TOP STORIES
- Police union vows to keep officers safe after Parramatta shooting
- SPORT Cowboys beat Broncos in golden-point grand final to win maiden NRL title
- Pharmaceuticals dispute between Australia and US could 'disrupt' TPP: Robb
- Flooding in French Riviera kills at least 16
- Afghan hospital bombing that left 19 dead 'possibly criminal'
- Controlled burn threatens home north of Melbourne
- Pope Francis opens synod against backdrop of controversy over homosexuality
- Prison escapee on the run for two months found in kitchen cupboard
- Bishop says Russia's motivations in Syria go beyond targeting IS
- SPORT Clarkson praises 'proud group' of Hawks after title win
- Labor must show leadership in Karama saga, CLP says
- NSW fire fighters climb 1,500 stairs for motor neurone disease research
CONNECT WITH ABC NEWS
GOT A NEWS TIP?
If you have inside knowledge of a topic in the news, contact the ABC.
FEATURES
Vienna asylum seeker march
An estimated 150,000 people gather in Vienna's Heldenplatz to show their solidarity with asylum seekers.Life on the margins
Stephen Kolasa has been in and out of psychiatric care since he was 17. Like many other Australians with mental health issues, he believes the system has let him down.Tearing up the roller rink at 79
At 79, Giuseppe Inserra loves nothing more than ripping it up at the roller disco.Twitter reacts to England's woe
Twitter has gone into overdrive following England's elimination at the hands of the Wallabies at the Rugby World Cup.
TOP STORIES
- Police union vows to keep officers safe after Parramatta shooting
- Cowboys beat Broncos in golden-point grand final to win maiden NRL title
- Pharmaceuticals dispute between Australia and US could 'disrupt' TPP: Robb
- Flooding in French Riviera kills at least 16
- Afghan hospital bombing that left 19 dead 'possibly criminal'
- Controlled burn threatens home north of Melbourne
- Pope Francis opens synod against backdrop of controversy over homosexuality
- Prison escapee on the run for two months found in kitchen cupboard
- Bishop says Russia's motivations in Syria go beyond targeting IS
- Clarkson praises 'proud group' of Hawks after title win
- Labor must show leadership in Karama saga, CLP says
- NSW fire fighters climb 1,500 stairs for motor neurone disease research
JUST IN
- Prison escapee on the run for two months found in kitchen cupboard
- NSW fire fighters climb 1,500 stairs for motor neurone disease research
- Jubilation across northern Queensland as Cowboys win nail-biting NRL decider
- Thurston 'the greatest player we've seen', says Michael Morgan
- Hunt a shattered figure at NRL grand final
- 150,000 march in Vienna in solidarity with asylum seekers
- Cowboys beat Broncos in golden-point grand final to win maiden NRL title
- Controlled burn threatens home north of Melbourne
- Pope Francis opens synod against backdrop of controversy over homosexuality
- Former motocross champ aims for handcycling glory at 2020 Paralympics
MOST POPULAR
- As it happened: Cowboys beat Broncos in NRL grand-final thriller
- Police search Parramatta Mosque in shooting investigation
- Wallabies dump England out of Rugby World Cup, qualify for quarter-finals
- Australian fans have a field day on Twitter as fallout from England's loss to Wallabies begins
- Pharmaceuticals dispute between Australia and US could 'disrupt' TPP: Robb
- Senior Vatican priest sacked after coming out as gay
- Gunman behind 'cold-blooded murder' in Parramatta identified
- Cowboys beat Broncos in golden-point grand final to win maiden NRL title
- Afghan hospital bombing that left 19 dead 'possibly criminal'
- Bishop says Russia's motivations in Syria go beyond targeting IS
ANALYSIS & OPINION
- Our abortion debates are civil - let's keep it that way
- If we want to be on the Human Rights Council, we must lift our game
- Is there such a thing as a good death?
- Against the odds, Hawthorn looks set for a Grand Final three-peat
- Shell boss confronts environmental, carbon challenges
- Health will suffer and businesses will close unless we #FixBushInternet
- Drum interview: Russia breathes new life into Assad regime
- Were we right to deny Chris Brown and Troy Newman visas?
- Tony Abbott's self-indulgent and damaging farewell radio tour
- Term deposits offer better returns than Melbourne houses
SITE MAP
This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.
AEDT = Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time which is 11 hours ahead of UTC (Greenwich Mean Time)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment-- or suggestions, particularly of topics and places you'd like to see covered