Police ‘reasonable’ in shooting man who stabbed tourist

Videos from their body-worn cameras showed Bahram sprinting with a large knife directly towards a constable, who yelled at him to drop the weapon several times.

When Bahram did not comply, both officers fired their service weapons, inflicting fatal injuries to his heart and liver.

In findings released last week, Ryan said the officers acted proportionately to an armed and potentially active offender who had wounded a person.

“The evidence showed they only had a matter of seconds to respond to [Bahram] when they arrived at Mary Street,” Ryan said.

“They were not aware of his background in terms of his mental health history, and had to respond to the highly dynamic situation.”

Bahram’s family had submitted to the inquest that police mischaracterised the investigation as terrorism-related without clear justification, especially given their explanation about his mental health issues.

The family said their grieving had been disrupted and their reputation damaged by the investigators’ use of a search warrant to enter their home.

Ryan said it was not unreasonable for officers to exhaust all lines of inquiry into the motivation behind Bahram’s actions.

“The experience of having [Queensland and Australian Federal Police officers] in the family home in the immediate aftermath of [Bahram’s] death was distressing, particularly in terms of Islamic cultural practices,” Ryan said.

“However … the verbal communication with the family by officers during the execution of the search warrants was respectful.”

Ryan accepted that Metro South Health, which had been treating Bahram, had since improved its violence risk assessment and management system for mental health patients.

If you or someone you know needs help, phone Lifeline on 13 11 14 or beyondblue on 1300 22 4636.

AAP