Australian police probing terror links in Sydney police headquarters shooting

“NSW Police yesterday executed a warrant at a mosque in Parramatta“, police said in a statement Sunday.

Police are now probing why Mr Cheng, 58, who had never worn a uniform, was targeted by the lone gunman in a “brutal” and “callous murder” on Friday.

The victim was a civilian IT worker for the force. Police constables then returned fire, killing the gunman.

NSW Premier Mike Baird paid tribute to Cheng and gave his condolences to his family.

“There is a fair bit of information that he acted alone”.

“They are contributing to finding out what’s happened”, the source said.

Father Dennis Entriken told The Daily Telegraph they all hoped their kids had been spared the sight and sounds of the horror.

A senior figure at the Parramatta mosque has confirmed that police searched the mosque to look for a black backpack which they believe Farhad used to carry the gun he used to kill Mr Cheng. He apparently changed clothes there before making the 10-minute return walk east to the police headquarters.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull also referred to possible terror links while condemning the “cold-blooded murder”.

He said he saw the man in the black gown lying in a pool of blood, and that his was one of the bodies. “And it underlines the importance of families, communities, leaders being very aware of whether young people are becoming radicalised”. “The Muslim community are our absolutely necessary partners in combating this type of violent extremism”, he said.

He also said a few of the youth he worked with felt marginalised.

“We asked our staff to come inside because it appeared to be a serious situation”.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that he attended Arthur Phillip High School, just around the corner from the police headquarters.

But it is understood a relative was known to law enforcement or intelligence agencies.

In September 2014, police gunned down an 18-year-old was after he stabbed two members of a counterterrorism unit in Melbourne.

The teen was born in Iran but lived in the Parramatta area.

He said he was of Iraqi-Kurdish background and may have been a refugee. Mr Scipione remembered Mr Cheng as a “much-loved man” who would be missed and said he was hoping to speak with his family on Saturday.