A man who allegedly stabbed his partner while driving in Sydney’s south lashed out at those who rushed to her aid after the car crashed, police say.
A 58-year-old man was travelling in a car southbound on Princes Highway at Engadine and stabbed his passenger, a woman in her 40s, multiple times before crashing into another car, police allege.
Superintendent Donald Faulds, from the Sutherland Shire Police Area Command, said the pair were in a domestic relationship.
"We believe the female was being assaulted in the car while the male was driving the vehicle at the same time," he said.
"A number of witnesses mentioned that the car was driving quite erratically at the time, and we believe that was when the assault was occurring ... and as a result they then collided with another vehicle."
The woman, from south-west Sydney, is in a stable condition.
Superintendent Faulds said while there were no active Apprehended Violence Orders between the two, the man was known to police.
Another man, who police said tried to help the woman in the car, was also allegedly stabbed in the abdomen and is in a serious but stable condition.
The man, who police allege got out of the car wielding a box cutter, suffered self-inflicted stab wounds. He ran from the scene but was chased and tasered before being taken into police custody.
He was transported to Liverpool hospital in a critical condition, but is now in a serious but stable condition.
The police officer who suffered a laceration to his arm while arresting the man is in a serious but stable condition.
Two other people were also injured as a result of the car crash. They are in hospital in a stable condition.
Police thank bystanders for 'amazing bravery'
Police said multiple calls were made to triple-0 after the two-car crash at the intersection of Princes Highway and Old Bush Road about 9am.
A number of people stopped to assist believing it was a normal car accident.
"They've obviously gone to render assistance to both people and then they were faced with a male with a box cutter," Superintendent Faulds said.
"Quite frightening, but very, very brave on their behalf."
Terrified witnesses have described a man in a bloodstained shirt banging on their car windows.
One witness who did not want to be identified told the ABC he saw the man get out of the car yelling "I'm going to kill you".
"When the cops came he ran down the street screaming. They shot the taser at him right on the footpath, but it didn't even seem to touch the sides, he just kept bolting," he said.
"He was off his rocker."
[map]David and Tahlia Pike, and their eight-month-old baby, live just a few doors away from where it all unfolded.
When they heard a loud bang, they also thought it was a car crash but then they heard the arguing and saw the man standing outside the car holding what they described as "some type of blade".
"He kept on threatening to kill himself," Mr Pike said.
"He was even saying 'I've seen my grave this morning, I need to die so you can live'."
Ms Pike added that he was yelling "weird stuff".
"Like 'freedom, you all need to open your eyes' and then he’d swear and say 'you need to open your eyes'," she said.
The Pikes also saw a number of people trying to protect the woman sitting inside the car by keeping the car doors shut.
According to Mr Pike, one good Samaritan grabbed a fishing hook from his boat to push the man away. But they all had to step back when another person rendering assistance was injured.
Wayne was among the people who bravely stood between the suspect and the stabbed woman, despite the man threatening him.
"We got him away enough for her to be protected in the car, he didn't go near the car again," he said.
"I said 'You need to calm down' ... I then just stepped away. We diffused the situation pretty much, because he didn't go back there and then the police thank goodness came."
Despite feeling like he had being "hit with a brick", Wayne said he did what had to be done at the time, and denied being a hero, saying the real hero was the man who stood against the door.
With the fatal stabbing incident at Westfield Bondi Junction in April still fresh in Wayne's mind, he wondered where it would happen next, and had a message for NSW Premier Chris Minns.
"Chris, come on mate, we need to sort this out really before anybody else gets hurt," he said.
"The police are out there doing their jobs everyday, the paramedics are doing their job, they don't know whether they will be coming home.
"It's not fair, it's not fair, be realistic and listen to the community, mate, please."
Mobile phone footage obtained by the ABC shows the man running from the scene with police in pursuit.
In another video, he is pinned to the ground under arrest after being tasered.
Police call for public help
NSW Premier Chris Minns posted on social media that he had been briefed on the incident and his thoughts were with "those innocent people who have been injured".
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the incident "shocking and distressing" on X and he thanked the first responders and the "brave members of the public who helped at the scene".
Earlier today, police minister Yasmin Catley said an investigation was underway.
"There is no threat to the community, I just want the community to know that there is no threat whatsoever," she said.
Police are appealing for anyone with dashcam or mobile phone footage of the incident to come forward.
