Australian PM says siege gunman had history of mental instability and extremism
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Tuesday the gunman behind the Sydney cafe siege was well known to authorities and had a history of mental instability.
"The perpetrator was well known to both state and commonwealth authorities," Abbott told reporters in a brief press conference in Canberra. "He had a long history of violent crime, infatuation with extremism and mental instability."
"These events do demonstrate that even a country as free, as open, as generous and as safe as ours is vulnerable to acts of politically motivated violence," Abbott said.
