Church of Scientology pays tribute to Sydney stabbing victim
It’s a closely guarded secret facility, but the Church of Scientology’s Sydney headquarters are now a crime scene after a man was stabbed to death inside the compound.
The victim was a 24-year-old Taiwanese staff member who was escorting a 16-year-old boy out after an apparent family dispute.
“The victim was a beloved member of our Church,” Scientology Australia said in a brief statement.
“This very unfortunate matter is in the hands of the police.”
Police took the 16-year-old boy away with his hands bound in evidence bags.
Just hours earlier, police say two staff members had tried to remove him from the Chatswood complex when they were allegedly attacked.
“He was being escorted out, being walked out, and for some reason he’s removed a knife and caused the injuries that resulted in this tragedy,” North Shore Police Detective Chief Inspector Simon Jones alleged.
Emergency crews rushed to treat the two men, one bleeding heavily from his neck.
Doctors couldn’t save the 24-year-old Taiwanese national, killed during what’s believed to be a church member’s family dispute.
The second alleged victim, a 30-year-old man, was treated for minor cuts to his hands but has since been released from hospital and is expected to give a police statement as soon as he is well enough.
“It was a domestic incident, it does not, as far as I know, relate to the Scientology premises here,” Detective Chief Inspector Jones said.
The domestic dispute began on Wednesday and escalated inside the gates on Thursday, when officers allegedly had to draw their Tasers to get the teenager to drop his weapon, described by police as a 20 to 25 centimetre-long kitchen knife.
The 16-year-old was taken to Chatswood police station with his mother in another car, escorted by detectives.
The Chatswood complex is the controversial religion’s largest facility outside the US.
It’s believed the accused killer and his mother were here from China to attend a course.
Detectives are waiting for an interpreter to arrive before they can begin the formal interview process.
