The daughter of a victim killed in the Bondi Junction terror attack has identified her father as the heroic bystander seen on video throwing objects at the gunman after he was disarmed.
‘He Went Down Fighting’: A Daughter’s Tribute
Sheina Gutnick told CBS News that her father, Reuven Morrison, was the man captured in widely-shared footage hurling what she described as bricks at Sajid Akram. The attack occurred at a shopping centre in Sydney’s Bondi Beach area.
"He jumped up the second the shooting started," Gutnick said. "He managed to throw bricks, he was screaming … and protecting his community. He was shot dead."
She described her father’s final moments as a 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 paid tribute to his legacy, stating, "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."
Morrison, also known as Rueben, was a Jewish immigrant who fled persecution in the former Soviet Union for Australia in the 1970s. According to Chabad.org, he was a successful businessman who divided his time between Sydney and Melbourne and was dedicated to philanthropy.
Broader Context and Criticism
The footage shows Ahmed al-Ahmed tackling Akram and wrestling the gun from his hands, an act praised by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and former US President Donald Trump. Ahmed was shot four to five times during the altercation and remains in a critical but stable condition in St George Hospital.
Akram was subsequently shot dead by police.
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 told CBS.
This sentiment echoes concerns Morrison himself expressed in a 2024 ABC interview, where he said he did not expect to face antisemitism after moving to what he believed was the world’s safest country.
The identification of Morrison closes a gap in the narrative of that day, honouring a second civilian who acted with extraordinary bravery in the face of terror.
