Secrecy, 'manipulation', and guns: Sajid Akram's road to Bondi
Sajid Akram, the Bondi gunman, led a secretive life marked by manipulation and a long-standing interest in firearms, which culminated in an anti-Semitic terrorist attack carried out with his son Naveed in December 2025. Family members and acquaintances describe Akram as emotionally distant and deceptive, using hunting as a cover for target shooting at a rural property west of Sydney. Investigations reveal Akram's privileged upbringing in Hyderabad, India, and behavioral patterns consistent with narcissistic control, contributing to his son's radicalization and involvement in Australia's deadliest terrorist attack.
- ▪Sajid Akram told his brother-in-law he wanted a gun licence for hunting, a claim that later served as a cover for target practice linked to terrorist planning.
- ▪Akram and his son Naveed practiced shooting at cardboard targets on a rural property owned by a Greek army veteran known as Jimmy, showing no actual interest in hunting.
- ▪The Akrams deceived people around them, including claiming Naveed needed to return to Sydney to care for a sick grandfather who had been dead for 16 years.
- ▪Forensic psychiatrist Andrew Aboud analyzed the Akrams' relationship and suggested Sajid may have exerted narcissistic control over his son, viewing him as an extension of himself.
- ▪Sajid Akram was born into an upper-middle-class family in Hyderabad, India, where his father was a military officer and the family lived near a mosque in the old part of the city.
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Secrecy, 'manipulation', and a long interest in guns: Sajid Akram’s road to BondiBy Josh Robertson for Background BriefingBackground BriefingTopic:Terrorist Attacks8m ago8 minutes agoFri 1 May 2026 at 7:08pmabc.net.au/news/secrecy-guns-manipulation-sajid-akram-road-to-bondi/106621098Link copiedShareShare article A brother-in-law of Sajid Akram says the Bondi gunman spent years trying to isolate and control his wife and children, including eldest son Naveed.(Photo illustration: ABC News)Even to members of his own family, Sajid Akram was an unusually secretive man.To this day, his Australian brother-in-law, Michael, says he does not know how Akram met his sister Venera before they married.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at ABC News (Australia).