Police in Sydney have confirmed that a 60-year-old man is in custody after a Sydney mass shooting that left 20 people injured on Sunday evening.
Authorities say the suspect allegedly fired between 50 and 100 bullets into a crowded street in the city’s Inner West, hitting passing cars and even police vehicles.
According to RTÉ News, the incident took place in the early evening when the man began shooting “indiscriminately” at random vehicles.
Police said they received several emergency calls from terrified residents who reported loud gunfire and shattered glass as the bullets tore through shopfronts and cars.
“There could have been anywhere between 50 and 100 shots that have been discharged,” New South Wales Police Acting Superintendent Stephen Parry said.
Officers later tracked the suspect to an apartment above a nearby business, where they arrested him after a two-hour standoff. He was taken to hospital for treatment of injuries sustained during the arrest.
Authorities confirmed that one man arrived at hospital on his own with a gunshot wound and remains in serious condition. Another 19 people suffered minor injuries, mostly from flying glass and metal fragments.
“Many of those hurt were treated for shrapnel or shattered glass injuries,” police said.
One eyewitness, identified only as Tadgh, told Australia’s ABC News that he had been watching the rugby when the chaos began.
“It was very loud — bang, bang, bang — with flash-bangs, sparks, and smoke everywhere. It was something out of a movie, really,” he said.
Police are still investigating what led to the attack but say the shooter acted alone. The motive remains unclear, though officers have not ruled out mental health factors.
The scene was quickly sealed off, and forensic teams worked through the night to collect shell casings and examine vehicles struck by bullets. Investigators are also reviewing CCTV footage from nearby businesses to determine how the incident unfolded.
Mass shootings are extremely rare in Australia. The country introduced strict gun control laws in 1996 after the Port Arthur massacre in Tasmania, where a gunman killed 35 people.
Since then, the use of automatic and semi-automatic weapons has been tightly restricted, which has led to a sharp decline in similar attacks.
A spokesperson for New South Wales Police said more details about the charges will be released once the suspect is declared medically fit for questioning. Residents have been urged to avoid the Inner West area while forensic work continues.