Residents were left repairing damage to their homes and even cleaning up blood on Tuesday morning following the stabbing of a bishop in Sydney’s west.
Police allege a 16-year-old male stabbed Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel at the Christ the Good Shepherd Church on Welcome St in Wakeley about 7pm with an angry mob forming shortly after in protest.
On Tuesday morning, smashed cars, shoes, bricks, pieces of wood and glass were left strewn across the usually quiet residential street as multiple council street cleaners working to clean up the aftermath.
Residents Catarina and Steve Williams, who have lived in the area for 26 years, said they realised the seriousness of the situation when the riot squad was brought in.
“[The police] told us to stay in and lock the doors,” Catarina said.
“I said what happened you were here to protect us. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Grandmother-of-two and local resident Lina Davis, 73, said she had family members ringing all night concerned for her safety.
“I kept saying it’s OK I am safe,” she said.
“When I saw what they had done to the police cars and that this morning, there was no need for that. It is absolutely disgusting.”
One resident handed over a bloodied towel to police on Tuesday morning after one of those involved in the brawl jumped his back fence.
“He jumped over and was bleeding from his head and my sister just gave him a towel for it,” he said.
“He said he jumped as he was just trying to get away from it all.”
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said more arrests would be made in the coming days to those involved in the mob.
Police were seen taking multiple shoes, glasses, and piece of a Taser on the street into evidence and were also seen dusting a number of vehicles for fingerprints in the church car park.
One neighbour was left inspecting damage to his metal fence and repairing his garden following the aftermath.
“I was at work when it all happened,” he said. “But it’s like, well what can you do?”
Another home in the street had visible damage to its garden bed, where wooden retaining features had been ripped off.
Resident Van Lee said he and his wife were quick to lock their gate after they heard screaming at the church.
“It was very loud, my wife was very scared,” he said.
Police remain at the scene.