Intense Standoff With Australian Police Ends Resulting In Three Dead

c/o Channel 9 Australia

c/o Channel 9 Australia

The world watched as a Sydney Australia Lindt Chocolatier shop was taken hostage in a 16-hour standoff that erupted in gunfire and left the hostage-taker and two hostages dead.

The perpetrator, 49 year old Iranian-born self-proclaimed “Muslim cleric” Man Haron Monis, claimed to have placed bombs around the store and across, leaving Australian police & hostage negotiators in the terrible position of working with him while trying to secure as much information as they could.  They spoke to Monis for several hours.

While negotiations were ongoing, Monis seemed intent to spread as much information as possible, using his hostages’ social media accounts to communicate with the public.  This information actually turned out helpful for police, as pictures & descriptive posts helped them to ascertain the locations and status of the hostages in the store.

As the hours dragged on, some hostages were able to flee, making their way to safety.

During the the 16th hour, Australian police were able to strategically make their way into the shop and subdue Monis, ultimately taking him down.

h9Monis, a serial offender, has had a history of violence and criminal activity going back years, with past offenses including sexual assault, accessory to murder,  and sending threatening letters to soldiers’ familes.  He was sentenced to 300 hour of community service for the letters, which he fought and lost only 3 days before the hostage situtation.

Speaking to ABC News, Manny Conditsis, who has acted as Monis’s lawyer during his ex-wife’s murder trial, said, “His ideology is just so strong and so powerful that it clouds his vision for common sense and objectiveness. Knowing he was on bail for very serious offences, knowing that while he was in custody some terrible things happened to him, I thought he may consider that he’s got nothing to lose.”

Although Monis had previously spoken in support of ISIS, officials do not believe he was connected or coordinated with any larger network.

 

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