One of the gunmen who killed 16 people and injured a further 40 at Bondi Beach in Australia has been identified as 24-year-old Naveed Akram. However, his mother has insisted that he is a “good boy” after officers surrounded their home.

New South Wales Police have confirmed that the shooters were father and son, aged 50 and 24, with Commissioner Mal Lanyon adding that the father was shot dead at the scene while the son was in hospital. Akram’s mother, Verena, told officers she could not believe he would carry out a terror attack.

She told the Sydney Morning Herald: “He doesn’t have a firearm. He doesn’t even go out. He doesn’t mix around with friends. He doesn’t drink, he doesn’t smoke, he doesn’t go to bad places … he goes to work, he comes home, he goes to exercise, and that’s it. Anyone would wish to have a son like my son … he’s a good boy.”

As reported by The Telegraph, the father and son told their family they were away on a fishing trip in Jervis Bay over the weekend. Verena claimed to have last spoken with Akram just hours before the attack on Sunday morning, adding that he told her he had gone for a swim and scuba diving.

Police commissioner Lanyon explained in a news conference that the 50-year-old father had held a gun licence for around 10 years prior to the shooting. The pair are believed to have been staying in the suburb of Campsie, which was not their home address and located around 20km from Bondi, before they carried out the terror attack on a Hanukkah celebration.

It has also been confirmed that two explosive devices were found at the scene at Bondi Beach, which will be closed as investigation work continues on Monday, but emergency services were able to safely detonate them. Akram was identified as one of the suspects after a licence was found at the scene, listing his home address as Bonnyrigg, located in south west Sydney.

Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports suggest the 24-year-old was originally from Lahore in Pakistan. Police confirmed his 50-year-old father was shot dead by officers at the scene in Bondi.

The force have also quashed reports that there was a third shooter involved in the attack. They confirmed they were not looking for a further suspect despite raiding homes in the area overnight.

According to social media posts from an Islamic centre in Australia, Akram completed religious studies in 2022. Adam Ismail, the head of the Al-Murad Islamic Institute, where Akram studied, has declined to comment

It has been confirmed that 16 people have died, while 42 were taken to hospital following the shooting. The age range of those who died is from 10 to 87 years old.

Police said 14 people died at the scene before a girl, 10, and a man, 40, died after being taken to hospital. Meanwhile, four children were among those rushed to hospital across Sydney and five people remain in critical conditions.

Two police officers were also shot. They remain in serious but stable conditions in hospital.

Among those who died was British-born rabbi Eli Schlanger. The father of five, who grew up in North London, was assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a news conference: “Yesterday was a dark day in our history but we as a nation are stronger than the people who did this.”

He added: “What we saw yesterday was an act of pure evil. An act of antisemitism, an act of terrorism on our shores in an iconic Australian location, Bondi Beach.”

The prime minister also thanked leaders from across the world for their support, including Sir Keir Starmer and President Donald Trump.

For all of the latest updates from the Bondi Beach terror attack, follow our designated live blog here.