Survivors say Monis 'had it in' for Lindt cafe siege victim Tori
Moments before he murdered Lindt Café manager Tori Johnson with an execution-style shotgun blast to the back of the head, gunman Man Haron Monis “steeled himself” for the task at hand.
Speaking exclusively to 60 Minutes, Martin Place hostage Louisa Hope revealed the physical change that came over the self-proclaimed “sheik” before he killed the young cafe manager.
“Then [Monis’] demeanour completely changes, like he suddenly steels himself,” she said.
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“He goes very firm and very hard, and very absolute in his body and feeling. Then he shoots Tori.”
The program also heard Monis “had it in” for the café manager.
"He had it in for him from the beginning, he kept referring to him as 'manager, manager'," Lindt Café worker Paolo Vassallo said.
Mr Vassallo said Monis didn't like that Mr Johnson, the café's manager, was an "authority figure".
"I think like it felt like it undermined him.
"Tori was brave, he wasn't leaving ... he was going to stay there 'til the end."
Last month an inquest into Johnson’s death heard he was ordered to kneel on the floor by Monis who then fired a shotgun shell into the back of his head from a range of about 75cm during the early hours of the December 16 siege.
Moments before Johnson was shot, six hostages had escaped and fled into Martin Place leaving seven still inside the cafe.
Aware that the situation was slipping from his grip, the gunman became paranoid and fixated on the front door where he expected police to break through.
Ms Hope was less than a metre from Johnson when he was fatally shot.
She said Monis was scanning the room, “shuffling” around with his gun held up, before forcing Johnson, who was sobbing, onto the ground.
More than a minute passed between after Monis forced the cafe manager to kneel down, Ms Hope said.
“It was enough time for Tori to steady his heart, then he shot him,” she said.
“The violence of the gun, and it’s so violent. The only consolation I have is that it was so instant … it was instant,” she said through tears.
The fatal shot was the trigger for police to storm the building and open fire on Monis – a police sniper had witnessed the entire incident and gave the “hostage down” signal.
Heavily-armed police then assaulted the Lindt Café building in a hail of automatic gunfire and “flashbang” stun grenades.
Monis was fatally shot twice n the head and 11 times in the chest.
He died instantly.
Sydney barrister Katrina Dawson was also fatally shot in the crossfire.
MORE FROM 60 MINUTES ON THE SYDNEY SIEGE:
Hostages reveal the terrifying moment the siege began
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