Dying Mother Gave Her Baby to Bystanders During Attack

Family thanks men at Sydney mall who cared for infant 'when Ashlee could not'
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 14, 2024 4:05 PM CDT
Dying Mother Gave Her Baby to Bystanders During Attack
Two women embrace after leaving flowers as a tribute near a crime scene at Bondi Junction in Sydney on Sunday.   (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

The nine-month-old girl who was among the stabbing victims at a shopping mall in Sydney is recovering after surgery, family members said. The child's mother, Ashlee Good, was one of the six people killed in the attack on Saturday, the BBC reports. Witnesses said Ashlee Good, 38, passed her daughter to bystanders after being wounded. "The mum got stabbed and ... came over with the baby and threw it at me and [I] was holding the baby," a man said. His brother said "He helped with holding the baby and trying to compress the baby and same with the mother." Although it looked bad for the child at first, he said, "With my brother holding the baby so well and really compressing, I think the baby's fine."

Good's family expressed gratitude to the medical team at Children's Hospital, police, and the two men who "cared for our baby when Ashlee could not." A statement said the family is "reeling from the terrible loss of Ashlee," whom it described as an "all-round outstanding human being." Other heroes include Faraz Tahir, a security guard who'd moved to Australia from Pakistan for refuge a year ago, per the BBC. The mall's management said he died "trying to protect the community." The officer who killed the suspect went in alone against him; she survived. The two men who helped Good were shopping when they saw the attacker "run up to the woman with the baby." One brother said to the other, "We've got to run in." (More Sydney stories.)

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