Australian PM says siege gunman had history of mental instability and extremism
SYDNEY - 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.
