'Bollard man' who confronted Sydney stabber is French, not Russian
A man who fended off a knife-wielding attacker who killed six people in a Sydney mall in April 2024 was French, not Russian -- as was falsely claimed in social media posts. The accounts shared video of the confrontation that appeared to show the man -- who was armed only with a shopping mall bollard -- shouting "Stay back!" in Russian, but the French national told Australian media that he did not say anything to the attacker.
"The Australian media is in shock. The only one who rushed at the terrorist who carried out the massacre in the Sydney shopping center turned out to be a Russian man!" read part of an X post from April 14, 2024.
It was published by Jamie McIntyre, who identified himself on his social media account as the founder of Australian National Review -- a website that has published false claims debunked by AFP in the past.
The false post was shared a day after six people were killed in a knife attack at a busy Sydney shopping centre, which police said was carried out by a local man with a history of mental illness. It referred to a person dubbed the "bollard man" after clips showed him confronting the attacker on the shopping mall's escalators.
At the time, the identity of the "bollard man" was not revealed.
A clip of the confrontation was also included in the post, where someone appears to shout "Step back!" in Russian. Another clip attached to the post appears to show coverage from Australia's Seven News, where the reporter said she was told the attacker was confronted by someone who yelled out in Russian.
The claim has spread globally, in posts from the United States, the UK and Russia.
These all appeared to repeat claims made on X by Simeon Boikov, a pro-Kremlin propagandist known by his moniker Aussie Cossack. He posted a screenshot of an article by Russia's RIA news agency that made the same false claim.
Boikov, who has previously spread misinformation, has been living at the Russian consulate in Sydney since December 2022 after being charged with assaulting a 76-year-old man during a protest in the city.
But the "bollard man" was not Russian, and he told local media he did not say anything to the attacker.
'Real heroes'
Australian media identified the "bollard man" on April 15 as Damien Guerot, a French national (archived link).
Seven News also identified the man as Guerot in a report (archived link). It did not repeat the initial report that he had spoken in Russian in subsequent coverage.
Guerot and fellow Frenchman Silas Despereaux recalled the experience to Australian broadcaster Nine Network's Today programme on April 17, telling the morning show about how they tried to contain the attacker (archived link).
"At that moment, I could not say anything," Guerot said when asked about the moment caught on video.
"I should actually have said something maybe to settle things down."
Guerot and Despereaux's actions were praised by Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who said that if Guerot wanted to become an Australian, he would be welcomed with open arms (archived link).
French President Emmanuel Macron also praised the duo.
"Two of our compatriots acted like real heroes. We are very proud and grateful," Macron said on X, also sending his condolences to the Australian people (archived link).
AFP has fact-checked other claims related to the deadly stabbings here.
