Crime
Bondi Beach Hero Speaks Out for 1st Time Following Tragic Incident: ‘I Didn’t Worry About Anything’
Ahmed al Ahmed, the hero of the Bondi Beach shooting earlier this month, is speaking out for the first time since he took down the active shooter in Australia.
“I didn’t worry about anything,” al Ahmed told CBS News in an interview airing Monday, December 29. “My target was just to take the gun from him, and to stop him from killing a human being’s life and not killing innocent people.”
“I couldn’t handle it to hear kids and the woman and oldest and man screaming and asking for help and no one help,” he added.
Fifteen people were killed when Sajid Akram and his son, Naveed Akram, opened fire on a group during a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, Australia, on December 14. Sajid, 50, was killed by officers on the scene. The 24-year-old suspect has been charged with 59 offenses, including committing a terrorist act, 15 counts of murder and 40 counts of causing wounding/grievous bodily harm to a person with intent to murder.
In surveillance footage released from the scene, al Ahmed was seen emerging from behind a parked car to tackle one of the attackers to the ground. He was able to wrestle the weapon from the gunman before being shot five times.
“I jumped on his back, hit him. I hold him with my right hand and start saying a word — to warn him — drop your gun, stop doing what you’re doing. And it all came fast,” he recalled. “My soul and everything in my organ and my brain asked me to go on defense and to save innocent life.”
“Emotionally, I’m doing something. I feel something — a power in my body, my brain. I don’t want to see people killed in front of me,” al Ahmed continued. “I don’t want to hear his gun. I don’t want to see people screaming and begging, asking for help.”
Ahmed — who has since been released from the hospital — was hailed a hero, and is credited with saving countless lives. More than $2.6 million has been raised via GoFundMe to support him.
