University student Benjamin Cohen will sue Channel Seven after he was wrongly identified as Westfield Bondi Junction killer
- Student, 20, is suing television network
- He was wrongly named as a murderer
- READ MORE: Ben Cohen speaks out after he was wrongly identified as the Bondi Westfield knifeman
A university student who was wrongly identified by Channel Seven as being the man who killed six people at a Bondi Junction shopping centre on Saturday has hired lawyers for legal action against the TV network.
Benjamin Cohen, a student at the University of Technology Sydney, wants an apology and compensation for harm after he was falsely named as the knife-wielding murderer.
The actual killer was Queenslander Joel Cauchi, 40, but Mr Cohen, 20, was named as the attacker in two Channel Seven broadcasts.
Sunrise presenter Matt Shirvington said on Weekend Sunrise at 6.05am on Sunday that the killer was '40-year-old Benjamin Cohen, dressed in a Kangaroos ARL jersey'.
Shortly after, hosts Monique Wright and Michael Usher spoke with reporter Lucy McLeod who also wrongly named Mr Cohen.
Benjamin Cohen (pictured) wants an apology, compensation and costs for harm after he was falsely named as the knife-wielding Bondi Junction murderer
READ MORE: Chilling moment man realises he spoke to the killer
Stefan Deutsch (pictured) shared the disturbing moment he realised he had exchanged Facebook messages with Bondi Junction killer Joel Cauchi
'The attacker, 40-year-old Benjamin Cohen, is known to police,' she wrongly said. 'His motives are not yet known, he was working on his own.'
Mr Cohen had been falsely identified on on social media within hours of the mass murders in the Westfield centre in Sydney's east on Saturday afternoon.
The police did not name Cauchi as the killer until about 9am on Sunday.
The television network blamed 'human error' for wrongly naming the computer science student.
A Seven insider said a news producer wrote the story which was then sub-edited by a senior producer before being sent to Shirvington to record his voice.
An internal investigation is underway to identify how that mistake was made.
Seven made an on-air apology, read out by reporter Sarah Jane Bell, on Sunday evening.
'One last thing, earlier this morning in reports of the incident, it incorrectly named the perpetrator as Benjamin Cohen,' she said.
'It was later confirmed that the name of the 40-year-old was Joel Cauchi from Queensland. Seven apologises for any distress caused by our earlier reports.'
Under the NSW Defamation Act, Mr Cohen could get damages of up to $459,000.
He is represented by high-profile law firm Giles George, which is also acting for former Channel Seven producer Taylor Auerbach in his case against the station.
News.com.au reported that a concerns notice has been issued by Mr Auerbach over comments purportedly made by some of the network's top brass around its interview with Bruce Lehrmann and claims made in court by Mr Auerbach.
The actual killer was Queenslander Joel Cauchi (pictured), but Mr Cohen was named as the attacker in several Channel 7 broadcasts
Mr Cohen said being wrongly named as the killer by Seven was 'highly distressing'.
'It's extremely disappointing to me to see people mindlessly propagating misinformation like this without even the slightest thought put into fact checking,' he told The Australian.
'But what's even more disappointing to me is a major news network doing this, using my name without waiting for a statement from police to verify this or going out to try and verify it themselves.'
Daily Mail Australia contacted Channel Seven for comment and was told by a spokesperson: 'We don't comment on legal matters.'
READ MORE: Yixuan Cheng identified as sixth victim of Bondi Junction stabbing
Yixuan Cheng was fatally killed after Joel Cauchi, 40, fatally stabbed six people and injured at least 12 more in a violent rampage at Bondi Junction on Saturday afternoon
