Police investigating if Sydney killer targeted women

New South Wales police are looking into whether the man who killed six people at a busy Sydney mall was targeting women.

Joel Cauchi
Joel Cauchi
The man - identified by police as Joel Cauchi from Queensland - went on a frenzied stabbing attack at Westfield Bondi Junction on Saturday afternoon (local time) before being shot dead by police inspector Amy Scott.

The 40-year-old killed six people - five  women aged between 20 and 55 and one man in his 30s. 

Seventeen people in total were stabbed. Twelve remain in hospital, including a nine-month-old baby, with conditions ranging from critical to serious but stable. Eight of the injured are women, AAP reports. 

On Sunday, New South Wales police commissioner Karen Webb was asked if she believed Cauchi was targeting women.

"That's been reported to me as well, and obviously that will be an obvious line of inquiry," she said, according to the ABC.

"And that's concerning, but that will form an obvious part of the investigation.

"I mean, anyone seeing that footage can see that for themselves," she said, referring to video shot of Cauchi by shoppers at the mall.

Meanwhile, the family of Ashlee Good, one of the victims of Saturday's attack, are remembering her as an "all round outstanding human" and loving mother, according to the ABC.

Good, 38, was stabbed alongside her baby girl. Her final act was to throw her daughter to two strangers in an attempt to save her life.

Those men used shirts from one of the stores to try to stop the little girl's bleeding.

The nine-month-old was taken to Sydney Children's Hospital, where she underwent surgery on Saturday evening and was in a critical condition on Sunday.

"Today we are reeling from the terrible loss of Ashlee, a beautiful mother, daughter, sister, partner, friend, all round outstanding human and so much more," Good's family said in their statement.

The family also thanked the two men who "held and cared for our baby when Ashlee could not".

"Words cannot express our gratitude."

A woman prepares to lay flowers at  Oxford Street Mall on Sunday near the site of the stabbings,...
A woman prepares to lay flowers at Oxford Street Mall on Sunday near the site of the stabbings, Westfield Bondi Junction. Photo: Getty Images
According to the ABC, the family said they were struggling to come to terms with what had happened, and asked for peace and privacy to work through their loss.

"We appreciate the well wishes and thoughts of members of the Australian public who have expressed an outpouring of love for Ashlee and our baby girl.

"We can report that after hours of surgery yesterday our baby is currently doing well.

"We are so grateful for the expert care and attention of the medical team at Sydney Children's Hospital."