The daughter of a victim killed in the Bondi Junction terror attack has identified her father as the heroic bystander seen hurling objects at the gunman in widely-shared footage, describing him as an "incredible man" who died protecting his community.
A Father's Final Act of Bravery
Sheina Gutnick told CBS News that her father, Reuven Morrison, was the man captured on video throwing what appeared to be bricks at gunman Sajid Akram, moments after Akram had been disarmed by another civilian, Ahmed al-Ahmed. Gutnick stated her father "jumped up the second the shooting started" in a desperate attempt to intervene.
"He managed to throw bricks, he was screaming … and protecting his community, he was shot dead," Gutnick said in the emotional interview. She framed his death as a tragic reflection of his character: "If there was one way for him to go on this earth, it would be fighting a terrorist. There was no other way he would be taken from us. He went down fighting, protecting the people he loved most."
An 'Incredible Man' Remembered
Upon seeing the footage, Gutnick immediately recognised her father. "That’s him. That’s my Dad. As I called him, my Tati, in Yiddish," she said. She remembered Morrison as a larger-than-life figure whose loss is deeply felt. "Everyone [who] knew him knew the incredible man that was just too big for this world. The light that he added, his absolute immense and endless generosity, his sense of humour. He was just the most incredible person."
According to a report by Chabad.org, Morrison, also known as Rueben, emigrated from the former Soviet Union to Australia in the 1970s. He was a successful businessman who divided his time between Sydney and Melbourne and was known for his philanthropic spirit, dedicating much of his earnings to charity.
Community Warnings and a Critical Condition
Gutnick directed strong criticism at the Australian government following her father's death. "They have had the warning signs for so long. The Jewish community has been begging and begging and begging and we have fallen on deaf ears," she stated. This sentiment echoes concerns Morrison himself expressed in a 2024 ABC interview, where he said he didn't expect the antisemitism he faced in the USSR to follow him to Australia, a country he believed was a safe haven.
The other hero in the footage, Ahmed al-Ahmed, remains in a critical but stable condition at St George Hospital in Sydney after being shot four to five times in the shoulder during his brave confrontation. His actions, alongside Morrison's, have been praised globally, including by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and former US President Donald Trump.
The alleged attacker, Sajid Akram, was shot and killed by police at the scene. The identification of Reuven Morrison now completes the picture of civilian courage shown in those harrowing moments, leaving a community to mourn a father and a hero.
