Escaping from the Lindt Cafe
By Dee McLachlan
Yesterday the Herald Sun reported, “Lindt Siege Police Were ‘Flying Blind’,” and in the Daily Telegraph, “Lindt inquest: Police ‘couldn’t see Lindt Cafe during siege’.” (9/5/16) To quote:
“POLICE making the crucial decisions about the management of the Lindt Cafe siege had no vision from the scene — not even via TV sets…
“It wasn’t until about 8pm, 10 hours after the siege began, that a portable monitor was set up at the forward command post showing a live feed from a camera inside the Channel Seven building immediately opposite the Martin Place cafe, the inquest has been told today.” [my emphasis]
Incredible, absurd, preposterous, far-fetched, inconceivable — which synonym for UNBELIEVABLE do you prefer for what the commander of the Sydney siege said yesterday?
This is how events unfolded:
8.33am, December 15: Man Haron Monis enters the Lindt Cafe on Martin Place
9.15am: Monis tells a waitress he wants to speak to the manager. Manager Tori Johnson speaks to Monis, then says to another employee, “I need you to go get my keys from the office and lock the doors…”
9.20-30am: Monis has 18 hostages gets a waitress to hold an Islamic type flag to the window.
9.44am: Johnson (at the request of Monis) places 000 call and says Australia is under attack by Islamic State.
9.45am: Morning Show co-host Kylie Gillies said she saw the situation unfold “LIVE ON AIR” from about 9.45am (link here).
9.46am: Police acknowledge the incident.
9.51am: Police arrive at the scene. An officer talks to someone inside through the glass door.
9:52am: Tactical operations unit acknowledges the emergency.
10.07am: Tactical operations unit arrives.
Throughout the day, Australia watches the drama unfold on television.
3.35pm: ESCAPE – Three people – one staff member and two others – seen running from cafe.
4.58pm: ESCAPE – A further two Lindt cafe staff escape, making a desperate sprint from the fire exit.
7.30: Three snipers want to shoot Monis. The Daily Telegraph reports “Police sniper pleaded, Let me kill gunman Man Monis now“
8.00pm: 10+ hours later, the command centre finally sets up a TV monitor – and gets vision of the siege. “The Superintendent in charge of the command centre for most of the daylight hours on December 15, 2014, said they had no access at the FOC to any vision.” (They are at and near Channel 7)
2.03 – 2.10am, December 16: ESCAPE – Six hostages make a run for it.
2.14.00am: Monis makes Mr Johnson kneel on the cafe floor and shoots him. Police enter. Moments later, Katrina Dawson is wounded — resulting in her death. [I assembled the above timeline from various sources]
Note: In the Herald Sun article, it says that the Superintendent “did not even see the five hostages escape during the daylight hours and was later told about them,” but, “direct vision of the cafe during the day had not been pivotal but it would have been valuable.”
The lack of vision was blamed on technical difficulties.
Surely, our police cannot be this incompetent. Billions are spent on security, but we are unable to hook up vision?
Was this another “This has to happen” incident?
I refuse to subscribe to a MSM source, so I couldn’t use your links. Did the police snipers give evidence during the hearing, or did some supervisor give evidence on their behalf?
I was wondering if the ASIO file on Monis was subpoenaed and produced. I’d much rather see that file than some ‘police’ file. It would likely take the hearing down a much deeper rabbit hole.
The cops that were there that day must be upset for being associated with such a debacle.
Not exactly sure who gave evidence.
Who’s running the Inquest?
I wish I could comment. Perhaps Bondi Junction and Edgeciff were lucky/inconvenient?
I believe the snipers gave evidence (maybe behind closed doors?) But apparently the police did not want the snipers pleas aired
This-all has got to be a lie. I don’t mean it’s a lie that the hookup failed. Perhaps it did fail, if so, it surely was not due to mechanical failure or human incompetence; it was deliberate. It was part of the evasion of blame for the deaths of Tori and Katrina.
“POLICE making the crucial decisions about the management of the Lindt Cafe siege had no vision from the scene — not even via TV sets…” “It wasn’t until 10 hours after the siege began, [blah blah blah]”
Dee, as you know, Prexie Richard Nixon uttered something on the White House tapes that he (or his handlers) did not want broadcast. So they got his secretary Rosemary Woods to lie that she accidentally erased 18 minutes of the tape.
I think the whole country (US) understood that there was really never an accidental erasure of the tape. We “accepted” that it was a polite way of relieving the president from any consequences that might occur if the truth came out.
No one knew how to combat this chicanery. I suggest that the person hosting the Inquest should say to the NSW commander:
“Your statement about the failed hook-up is extremely implausible. So I must ask you to explain again what happened, please give a more plausible statement. I remind you that you are under oath and perjury is a crime. I remind you that lying to this Inquest is also a crime.”
Reject the lies in real time. Reject, reject, reject.
If anyone doubts that things DO NOT SEEM RIGHT about this incident then these words should convince them:
“It wasn’t until about 8pm, 10 hours after the siege began, that a portable monitor was set up at the forward command post showing a live feed from a camera inside the Channel Seven building immediately opposite the Martin Place cafe, the inquest has been told today.”
MAYBE THEY WERE WATCHING CHANNEL NINE THAT DAY? (They had a live feed of the event too as i recall)…..
Be interesting to know what would have been disclosed in regard to Port Arthur if a inquest had been conducted, as is being disclosed by this tradegedy.
What stands out from other reports concerning the Lindt tragedy is; that Monis wanted to speak to the PM why was he denied the contact?
What has Abbott to say on this? Who, if anyone, consulted with Abbott and what are the details?
Could comment more, but all very curios.
My bet is that Abbott would have been prepared to listen to Monis and a potential resolution was denied an opportunity.
After all, Abbott is currently reported to turn and help someone change a tyre. That is his nature!
You have hit the nail on the head, Ned.
He was not in the loop. Just fathom it! I wish he would speak up now, poor bugger.
And the matter is an obvious question to be raised by counsel for the victim’s families.
I would suggest that this was another false flag event to put we stupid Aussies against ALL muslins. Once again lives don’t matter to the masters. Why did the police need to rely on technology? Why not get involved physically like the old days.
10 hours to get monitors up and going. A bit like taking 4-5 hours to get police on the ground at Port Arthur when the police hierarchy knew there was a massacre in progress. Something that should have had cops in helicopters within 15 minutes.
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It was reported at some stage that after Monis arrived in Australia a deportation order from Iran was remitted demanding his return to his home country to face a murder charge of his wife. It looks like the Australian Authorities refused this order, having their own agenda for him.
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