Viral posts name wrong man as suspect in Sydney mall stabbing | Fact check

Hannah Hudnall, USA TODAY
·2 min read

The claim: Sydney mall attacker was identified as Benjamin Cohen

An April 13 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a picture of a man holding a knife.

"The Sydney Bondi mall attacker has been identified by some as Benjamin Cohen," reads text below the image.

The post's caption says, "It's antisemitic to call the Australian terrorist attack a Jewish terror attack. Even though a Jew did it I'm sure it's still Islam's fault."

The post was liked more than 200 times in four days. Other versions of the claim were shared on Facebook and X, formerly Twitter.

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Our rating: False

Police identified a different man, Joel Cauchin, as the attacker and said there's no indication the attack was motivated by ideology. A local news network named Benjamin Cohen as the attacker but later said those reports were incorrect and apologized.

Cohen incorrectly named by news network

A man who fatally stabbed six people at a mall in Sydney, Australia, was shot dead by police April 13 in the beachside suburb of Bondi. In addition to those killed, eight people, including a 9-month-old baby, were taken to the hospital with stab wounds.

The morning after the attack, local outlet 7 News wrongly identified a Sydney man named Benjamin Cohen as the attacker on air and its YouTube channel, according to The Guardian. Several hours later, police identified 40-year-old Joel Cauchi as the attacker.

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7 News removed the reports mentioning Cohen and one of its anchors apologized for the mistake on air, but the network didn't reveal where it got Cohen's name. Cohen has since hired a lawyer and is seeking damages.

Police said in an April 13 press briefing that there is no indication ideology motivated the attack and said it was likely "related to the mental health" of Cauchi. There are no credible reports that Cauchi was Jewish.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

AFP also debunked the claim.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sydney man wrongly linked to Bondi mall stabbing | Fact check