Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing: Benjamin Cohen reaches settlement with Seven after he was wrongly identified as the killer
A student wrongly named by Channel Seven as the Bondi Junction attacker has settled with the network for an undisclosed sum.
Benjamin Cohen retained two of Australia’s leading defamation lawyers, Patrick George of Giles George as his lawyer and Sue Chrysanthou SC as counsel, to pursue a civil case against the network.
A concern notice was sent to Seven last week, with the network revealing on Friday that it had reached a settlement with the university student and issued an apology.
Mr Cohen’s name was wrongly linked to the April 13 attack by Sunrise co-host Matt Shirvington shortly after 6am the next day, and again by journalist Lucy McLeod ten minutes later.
Joel Cauchi, a 40-year-old man from Queensland, has since been identified as the man in an Australian Kangaroos jersey who went on a murderous rampage through the popular shopping center in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
Ben Cohen (pictured) was wrongly identified by internet sleuths as the knifeman behind the Bondi Junction Westfield attack
The knifeman (pictured during the attack) turned out to be 40-year-old Joel Cauchi
Hours the Seven wrong reports, NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley confirmed Cauchi was the attacker shot dead by hero police officer Amy Scott.
Seven issued an on-air apology to Mr Cohen on Sunday, read out by reporter Sarah Jane Bell at a cross.
“Earlier this morning, reports about the incident incorrectly identified 40-year-old Benjamin Cohen as the perpetrator,” she said on air.
‘The name was later confirmed to be that of 40-year-old Joel Cauchi from Queensland. Seven apologizes for any inconvenience caused by our previous messages.”
Online trolls wrongly identified Mr. Cohen on Saturday night and his name began trending on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Cohen told news.com.au earlier this week that he was being inundated with friend requests and messages on social media.
“It’s just gone crazy, it’s like ‘look, you’ve got the wrong guy’,” Mr Cohen, a first-year computer science student, told news.com.au.
‘People don’t really think about what they post and how it might affect someone. It’s very dangerous how people can just make things up and destroy people’s lives.”
Jeff Howard, Seven’s new managing director and chief executive, who took over after James Warburton resigned last week, said the mistake was a “serious mistake and completely unwarranted”.
“Seven unreservedly withdraws the false allegations and apologizes to you for the harm you and your family have suffered as a result of Seven’s statements about you,” he said in a letter to Mr Cohen released by his lawyers.
He explained that a Seven producer wrongly assumed that information circulating online was correct.
“This led to the inclusion on Seven’s news at approximately 6.05am and 6.15am of the words referred to in the concern report and for a short time on Seven’s social media,” he said.
‘The error quickly became apparent and the name ‘Benjamin Cohen’ was no longer broadcast in Seven’s ongoing coverage. Seven tried to find a contact number for you, but didn’t have one until your mother called the editor.
‘The staff at Seven, including in particular the presenters, Mr Shirvington and Mrs [Lucy] McLeod, we are devastated that the mistake was made and that it has affected you.
‘Seven would like to reassure you that the error originated at producer level and that Seven’s presenters were in no way involved in suggesting or scripting the words that were published.
“Both Mr Shirvington and Ms McLeod would nevertheless like to offer their own personal apologies for the pain and distress caused. While Seven does not suggest this is relevant to your response, we note that the staff members involved are deeply remorseful and traumatized by the error.”