NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn has confirmed that police have made contact with the man responsible for a siege at a central Sydney cafe.
Speaking at a media conference today, Deputy Commissioner Burn said police were attending to the people who had so far emerged from the cafe and had spoken to the man behind the siege.
“Our number-one aim is to resolve this incident peacefully," she said. "We have numerous resources from the NSW Police force on site in that effort to make sure that everybody in that location is unharmed.
“We do not have any information to suggest that anyone is harmed at this stage."
She said police could not disclose certain operational information because the situation was ongoing but confirmed they had made contact with the gunman.
"Police negotiators have had contact and they continue to have contact," she said.
"At this stage those motivations are not known and it would not be good to speculate."
"We now have numerous police working on establishing who this person is and what his motivations might be."
She said police did not know how many people were being held inside the cafe but said reports that there were up to 30 people inside were probably incorrect.
"That sort of a number does not equate with what we would be assuming," she said. "We don’t know for a clear fact but it is not as high as 30."
Deputy Commissioner Burn advised people inside buildings facing Martin Place to stay indoors but said people in surrounding areas were free to go home.
She said police had set up a "safety site" in Hyde Park, near Martin Place, and a hotline for those needing information or assistance.
A police perimeter has been set up around Hunter, Pitt, King and Elizabeth streets.
Five people have so emerged from the Lindt Cafe in Martin Place. It is unclear how many remain inside.
The police hotline can be reached at 1800 227 228.
Share
