---

Sajid Akram, 50, hailed from Hyderabad’s Tolichowki and moved to Australia on a student visa in 1998, visiting India only six times thereafter, police said.

---

Telangana Police on Tuesday said that one of the two alleged attackers involved in the deadly Bondi Beach shooting in Australia was an Indian national from Hyderabad who last visited India in 2022.

The suspect, identified as Sajid Akram, 50, was a resident of Tolichowki in Hyderabad before migrating to Australia on a student visa in 1998. Police said he visited India only six times after moving abroad.

“The family members have expressed no knowledge of his radical mindset or activities, nor of the circumstances that led to his radicalisation. The factors that led to the radicalisation of Sajid Akram and his son, Naveed, appear to have no connection with India or any local influence in Telangana,” Telangana Police said in a statement.

Police added that there were no adverse records against Akram during his stay in India prior to his migration.

On reports suggesting that the father-son duo were inspired by Islamic State ideology, Telangana Police said further investigation was being conducted by Australian authorities and urged the media and public to avoid speculation without verified facts.

Akram was shot dead by police at the scene, while his 24-year-old son, Naveed Akram, who allegedly acted alongside him, was also shot and remains in critical condition in hospital.

Investigators said the attackers opened fire on a large crowd at a beachside festival, killing at least 16 people. Australian police also confirmed the recovery of homemade Islamic State flags and an improvised explosive device from the attackers’ vehicle, according to media reports.