Bondi Beach Shooting: Cop who shot dead Sajid Akram joined force because he ‘hates crime’ | World News
Australian authorities have revealed the identity of the hero cop who, with one shot, took down one of the two terrors who carried out the mass shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday.Detective Senior Constable Cesar Barraza was named on Wednesday as the officer in plain clothes who was seen in the viral video, which showed Sajid Akram being gunned down.
Hero Bondi cop named as Detective Senior Constable Cesar Barraza, the plain clothes officer captured firing at Sajid and his son Naveed Akram. pic.twitter.com/EhvXduc2hs— Francynancy (@FranMooMoo) December 17, 2025
In the video that has gone viral, the detective senior constable is seen approaching the gunmen, taking cover behind trees, as they opened fire on crowds with long-arm guns from a footbridge.
Barraza, who was not wearing any protective equipment, is seen raising his pol and firing towards the attackers.
Here is the tree, you can see the identifiable split of it and the public seat bench behind. In the video attached at 1:32 we see a female police officer hiding behind a car, no gun drawn. Cesar Barraza takes out both gunmen but the dance is 15m max as you can see on Google… pic.twitter.com/WcMxuTQJrP— jovan (@101010_jv) December 17, 2025
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Barraza, a Bondi-based detective, fired at the two gunmen from about 40 metres away. He took down Sajid and also wounded Naveed, who is still in a critical condition.
“The second shot (that hit Naveed Akram) has astounded firearms experts… they actually can’t believe it,” a source told The Daily Telegraph.
Officials inspect the scene in the early morning following a shooting Sunday at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)
Old video of hero cop resurfaces
After Barazza, a 16-year veteran, was identified as the cop who took down the Bondi Beach attacker, an old video of him has gone viral on social media.Story continues below this ad
He was featured on a reality TV show, The Recruits, in the 2000s, in which Barraza, a young and enthusiastic police recruit, explained why the force.
“My name is Cess Barraza and I want to be a police officer because I hate crime,” the then 26-year-old said in the resurfaced video.
“When I see somebody run a red light, I want to be able to pull them over right here and give them a ticket or at least cut off their licence,” he said further.
Barraza also gave details of his exercise routine, while expressing confidence about clearing the police fitness test.
“I’ve basically been training every day, I’ve been running in the mornings, doing push-ups, sit-ups,” he says.
