Friends of Dawn Singleton’s fiancee have rallied around their mate, fearing he may leave the police force as a result of the tragic Westfield Bondi stabbing.
Sydney police officer Ashley Wildey was on call when the incident unfolded and rushed to the shopping centre after making several calls to his 25-year-old fiancee.
Mr Wildey knew Ms Singleton was in the centre shopping, with attending officers forced to tell him that 40-year-old Queensland man Joel Cauchi had killed her.
A friend of Mr Wildey told The Daily Telegraph that while he struggled to come to terms with the tragic incident, they hoped he would stay in the force.
“The police should be commended,” the friend said. “His police mates have been very, very good – the boys brought around hamburgers, chips and Coke and have stayed with him, talking and making sure he knows he is supported.
“They don’t want to lose him. He is very good at his job. It’s too early to say now, but I think he’ll probably stay in the job. He has always wanted to help people.
“He is young, and I know he has helped crack some cases already. The police won’t want to lose him.”
On Wednesday, Mr Wildey visited the Singleton family to pay his respects – including dad, millionaire businessman John Singleton.
The tragic incident came just weeks after the couple sent out save-the-date cards to their wedding. Ms Singleton had already picked out her wedding dress.
“He’ll get through this. He is a tough kid,” the friend said.
A candlelit vigil will be held at Bondi at 5pm on Sunday in an effort to come together following a “terrible week” for the city.
“I think if we can stand together during these difficult periods, we can send a message that there’s far more good people in this city than there are bad actors and than there is evil,” NSW Premier Chris Minns said on Saturday.
“Those that have lost loved ones have said unanimously that they can feel the community support behind them and that they know that they’re not alone.”
A formal memorial service will happen at a later date to honour the victims.
Counsellors and support services have been made available to emergency responders who have been on scene of multiple violent attacks this week.
“You can understand that the trauma associated with that will bring up lots of emotions,” he said.
“My hope is that mixed in with that emotion is pride in the job that they’ve done on behalf of the people of NSW because when they were asked to stand up they did exactly that.”
On Saturday, NSW Health announced that all six people still in hospital after the stabbing rampage have been recovering well in hospital.
Two men, three women and a nine-month-old baby have all improved to a stable condition.