https://au.news.yahoo.com/nsw/a/26129631/sydney-siege-inquest-to-unveil-new-stor...An inquest has revealed harrowing details for the first time about what happened inside the Lindt Cafe during the 17-hour Sydney siege.
The court heard the gunman Man Haron Monis shot manager Tori Johnson execution style, while Katrina Dawson was caught in the crossfire as police stormed in.
Man Haron Monis, the Iranian-born self-styled cleric who died along with two of the people he had taken hostage, was being investigated over fraud charges when he fled his home country in 1996, police said.
"Rarely have such horrifying events unfolded so publicly," State Coroner Barnes said in his opening address.
"Indeed there are some questions that may remain unresolved because the only person who truly knew the answers is beyond reach."
Here are some of the first major insights into exactly what happened on December 15;
Wearing camouflage pants, black jacket, baseball cap, black backpack, self-styled Islamic cleric Man Monis, 50, entered the cafe around 8.33am carrying a plastic bag.
He carries a hidden pump-action shotgun sawn off at the butt and barrel.
Monis eats chocolate cake and drinks tea, then moves to a table with a view of the whole cafe, then around 9.03am he asks to speak to the manager.
Tori Johnson sits down and appears stressed during the conversation, according to staff.
Johnson says to a colleague something like, "I need you to get my keys - lock the doors - we're closed - everything is OK - tell the staff to be calm".
Hostages were forced to hold the black flag with white Arabic writing up to the window, in full view of 7News cameras in the adjacent building.
The doors are then locked and Monis puts on a vest and a bandanna, stands up, produces the shot gun and declares, "This is an attack. I have a bomb".
He orders staff and customers to move to northern wall of the cafe, and orders hostages to hold a flag described as being Islamic up to the windows.
Around 9:44am, Monis tells Johnson to call Triple-0 and operators are told 'Australia is under attack by Islamic State'.
Johnson says radio bombs are in Martin Place, Circular Quay and George Street, which later proves to be false. He tells the operator he has a gun pointed at him, and that Monis has taken him and others hostage.
Police acknowledge the incident around 9.46am and arrive at the scene about five minutes later, as a tactical operations unit acknowledges the emergency.
At 10.07am the tactical operations unit arrives and the siege is treated as a possible terrorist attack.
Monis tells his 18 hostages he has a bomb in his backpack, which he holds on to throughout the siege.
Iran repeatedly warned Australia about the criminal past of the perpetrator of the Sydney cafe siege and called for him to be kept under surveillance, top officials in Tehran said. Photo: 7News
Some of the hostages manage to escape during the afternoon, and Monis fires his gun, striking the wall above the cafe door.
He fires again, striking the wall above the cafe door in the early hours of December 16.
Around 2.14am, Monis forces Johnson to kneel on the floor of the cafe before he is shot in the head, from 75cm away.
A police marksman stationed in the 7News building witnesses the shooting and police force entry to the cafe, shattering the glass windows and doors.
Tactical units throw eleven flashbang grenades, creating sudden violent flashes of light and gunshot sounds.
Two police officers fire 22 shots at Monis, who returns fire, shooting his shotgun once or twice at the entry team.
Monis is killed by at least two bullets or fragments to the head and 11 other bullets or fragments to the body.
One of several hostages who managed to escape.
Hostage Katrina Dawson is struck by six fragments of a police bullet or bullets, which ricochet from hard surfaces into her body, striking a major blood vessel.
Three other hostages and one tactical operative are also hit by ricocheting bullet fragments.
The siege ends with heavily armed police storming the high-end cafe, after about 10 of the 17 surviving hostages managed to escape.
Sydney siege hero Tori Johnson was shot dead at close range by gunman Man Haron Monis just seconds before police stormed the Lindt Chocolate Cafe, according to police investigations.
Reports have suggested that Monis shot Johnson as he tried to wrestle his weapon.
Monis apparently fired five shots in total. Police fired 22 shots, and launched 11 distraction grenades.
No details were revealed about why police did not shoot Monis earlier, but it will be investigated.
Insights into Monis's behaviour will also come from hostages like Marcia Mikhael, who will appear in a 7News special on the siege.
The family of hostage Marcia Mikhael spoke of their most fearful hours as they watched the Sydney siege unfold from their home in Canada.
"He didn't seem to have a plan. He seemed to be making up things as he was going along [because] his stories were kind of contradicting you know themselves," Mikhael told Seven's Melissa Doyle.
"I don't think he was meant to be there and the reason I think he wasn't meant to be there is he didn't have he didn't know the layout of the cafe."
Continued...
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