Local surfer shares messages he exchanged with Bondi killer Joel Cauchi just six months before his shopping center massacre

Deutsch posted a screenshot on TikTok of the brief conversation from October last year, which revealed that Cauchi had asked him for surfing lessons.

In the news, Cauchi said he was interested in surfing lessons and asked Deutsch if they were free.

“Hello, I am interested in surfing lessons in Sydney. Can I please apply?” Cauchi’s first message was.

“Hello, yes, I can give you surfing lessons!” German replied.

Cauchi responded the next day, asking, “Are they free?” A short time later, Deutsch told Cauchi that the classes were not free and apologized to the would-be murderer, who saw the message but did not respond.

Less than a week before the attack, Cauchi had invited Sydney residents in a Facebook group for amateur surfers to join him at Bondi Beach.

“Hello, I'm surfing in Bondi this afternoon if anyone wants to meet up there to surf!” he wrote.

In December 2020, on Facebook pages dedicated to fishing and outdoor activities, Cauchi urged people who “shoot weapons, including handguns,” to meet and “get to know each other.”

“Hello, I am looking to meet, chat with and get to know groups of people who shoot weapons, including handguns. Please send me a DM if you can help me! By the way, I live in Brisbane,” his post read.

This year, on January 5, Cauchi was looking for a ride and accommodation in Sydney on the Australian Backpackers site.

“Hello, I live in Sydney and am looking for people to share rides with, pay for some gas and stay overnight together in some interesting places near Sydney,” he wrote.

Two days later, he posted on the Australian Amateur Astronomy and Astrophotography page, hoping to “join in” with someone to learn the skill “in a place with a dark sky.”

The next day, he left a review for Palm Beach in Sydney, describing the place as an “absolutely fantastic” beach for surfing and snorkeling or even “just a picnic.”

NSW Premier Chris Minns on Monday announced up to $18 million in emergency funding for an independent judicial inquiry into the Bondi Junction murder series.

“I expect this investigation will focus not only on the NSW Police response and criminal investigation into the events in Bondi Junction on Saturday afternoon, but also on this offender's interactions with… government agencies, as well as with assistance the Queensland Government. “Interactions that this man had in this condition,” Mr Minns said.

“I expect the police to continue their investigations and any information leading to changes in government policy will run alongside the independent investigation.”

Anyone with further information that could help with the investigation is asked to contact police.