Doctors have amputated the leg of an Australian lawmaker after a man rammed her with his car and then reversed to hit her a second time in an incident being investigated by anti-terrorism police.
Helen Haines, an independent, underwent surgery overnight and remained in critical condition after Monday’s attack in the small rural town of Wangaratta, north of Melbourne.
The motive for the attack has yet to be revealed, but Australia’s prime minister has linked it to a climate of polarised political debate in the country.
“It’s clear that there was a deliberate act here. This wasn’t an accident, someone just skidding off the road,” Albanese told ABC News.
A 43-year-old man was arrested following the attack, with counter-terrorism authorities among the multiple agencies involved in the investigation.
In the wake of the attack, the suspect’s family released a statement noting that they are long-time friends of Helen Haines.
It’s been revealed that the suspect’s father, Rod Nugent, and his partner, Christine Cunningham, were long-time friends of Haines, having known each other “for more than 20 years”.
It comes as details are now emerging about a hero barber Ricky Jefferies who jumped in to restrain the attacker and removing the knife from his hand.
He said he initially believed the incident was a car accident when he ran from his shop.
“I heard a loud bang with no brakes. It was crazy, I just ran out to the front to see what’s happening,” Jefferies told reporters outside his shop.
“I didn’t realise the seriousness of the situation initially, and once it became relevant I just did what I could and what others were already trying to do.”
Social media accounts linked to the suspect have since revealed he was an anti-Israel activist and a radical environmentalist. Some of his posts refer to the conflict in Gaza, while older posts discuss environmental issues.
The suspect ‘strayed into “darker” things since his days protesting logging in the local forest’, according to police sources and Melbourne-based news outlet The Age.
His biography on X reads: “Plant person. The world should be run by children and dogs.”
It has also emerged that the suspect’s family were long-time friends of Ms Haines.
