Australian police drop charges against Bondi Beach attack hero Ahmed al Ahmed

Australian police on Wednesday dropped assault charges against a man lauded for his bravery during last year’s mass terror shooting at a Hanukkah event on Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

Fruit seller Ahmed al Ahmed was hailed as a hero when viral video footage showed him intervening in the December 14 antisemitic attack, which killed 15 people. The 44-year-old ducked between parked cars as the shooting unfolded, then grabbed one of the two gunmen and wrested away his weapon in an effort to stop the killing.

Ahmed was earlier this year accused of stalking and assaulting his own father, charges he denied.

Both charges were withdrawn after a brief hearing on Wednesday, court documents showed.

“It has been very difficult. It is a family situation that he never expected, one would never want to expect, and it must be very difficult for him,” his lawyer Mohamad Sakr said in June.

“There is one thing that must be upheld, and that is the presumption of innocence. He is a heroic man and his honesty and dignity should be maintained until these matters are determined,” the attorney added.

Ahmed, who sustained gunshot wounds at Bondi Beach, received plaudits worldwide for his actions, including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Case against terrorist involves over 800 witness statements

Meanwhile, a prosecutor in the proceedings against the surviving Bondi terrorist said Wednesday that the case has involved more than 800 witness statements and more evidence had yet to be examined.

Naveed Akram, 25, appeared briefly in Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on 78 charges related to the terror attack, which police allege was inspired by the Islamic State group. His father, Sajid Akram, was killed during the attack.

Prosecutor Danielle New outlined the large quantity of evidence that was still being compiled for the prosecution case.

The case was adjourned until October 28, when prosecutors will update the court on their progress.

More than 800 witness statements had already been examined along with video, ballistic evidence and data from seven electronic devices, New said.

But data from another 12 electronic devices and an improvised explosive device testing report had yet to be reviewed, she said.

Akram and his 50-year-old father allegedly began their attack by throwing four IEDs toward a Jewish crowd, but the devices failed to explode.

Police described the devices as three aluminum pipe bombs and a tennis ball bomb containing an explosive, gunpowder and steel ball bearings. While none detonated, police described them as “viable” IEDs.

The father was killed in a gunbattle with police and the son was wounded.

Naveed Akram has not entered pleas to the charges that include murder, attempted murder and committing a terrorist act.

The police investigation is one of three official inquiries examining Australia’s worst alleged terrorist attack and the nation’s deadliest mass shooting in 29 years.

Another one, which examined how law enforcement and intelligence agencies interacted before the attack, produced an interim report in April urging stricter gun controls. It was part of a wider royal commission, Australia’s highest form of public inquiry, which is investigating the nature and prevalence of antisemitism in daily life as well as the circumstances of the Bondi shooting.