Sydney siege gunman may have had schizophrenia

The gunman who carried out a deadly siege in a Sydney cafe last year may have suffered from chronic schizophrenia, a psychiatrist who had treated him told an inquest on Wednesday.

Iranian-born Man Haron Monis took more than a dozen customers and staff hostage at the upmarket Lindt cafe in the city’s financial heart on December 15, an incident which shocked the nation.

An inquest into his death and the deaths of two hostages at the end of the 16-hour siege, is probing Monis’ motivations -- including whether he was a “lone wolf” prosecuting an IS-inspired terrorist act or a deranged individual. It was told that Monis had mental health issues and at times believed he was under constant surveillance by security agencies in Australia and Iran.

Monis was referred to a psychiatrist in May 2010 after he ended up in hospital complaining of dizziness. “He was very evasive in his answers -- he felt that he was being watched all the time, even in his bathroom,” psychiatrist Kristen Barrett, who first saw Monis that May, told the court.

“My impression was that he had chronic schizophrenia and my treatment plan was to start anti-psychotic medication.” 

Barrett said she had prescribed medication for Monis and he seemed to improve, but by early 2011 he stopped taking the drugs and a few months later ended their sessions.

Monis, a self-styled cleric who had a history of extremist views and who demanded an Islamic State flag during the siege, was killed by police when they stormed the building after he shot dead cafe manager Tori Johnson, ending a long ordeal which put Sydney’s financial district in lockdown.