‘Devoted family man’ identified as shark attack victim at Sorrento Beach as his family break their silence and hunt begins for sea predator

The victim of a fatal shark attack at Perth’s Sorrento Beach has been identified as the state government issues a ‘catch and kill’ order for the sea predator.

Greg O’Neill, 63, was swimming close to the shoreline when he was set upon by a great white shark at 10.15am on Friday.

‘Our family is deeply shocked and devastated by the terrible tragedy that took the life of father, grandfather-to-be, brother, uncle, husband and friend, Greg James O’Neill,’ his family said. 

‘He was a generous, devoted family man that gave his children so much love, care and opportunity.

‘Greg loved the ocean and was known as a passionate swimmer, sports lover, dedicated worker and an all round generous, witty guy.

‘The kind thoughts and support from everyone who has reached out are deeply appreciated.’

Dozens of locals were at the beach when the attack took place, with witnesses describing a ‘large pool of blood’ in the water. 

‘Basically the shark grabbed him again, pulled him back down, and then it went out a bit further,’ local man Ryan Rowe told The West Australian.

Mr Rowe added: ‘It popped back up again, and then went back down, and they haven’t seen the body since.’

He said locals who frequent the stretch of coast were shocked by the incident, adding: ‘I couldn’t believe there was that much blood [coming] out of a human body.

‘We’re always sort of in and out of the water and stuff like that – it’s so close to home.’

Beaches in the City of Joondalup remained closed on Saturday morning and WA government officials have been carrying out land-based patrols in the area.

WA Fisheries Minister Jackie Jarvis confirmed on Saturday it was a ‘very large’ white shark that is believed to have been more than 3m long and was not tagged, which meant it did not set off alarms at the beach.

‘So, white sharks are protected internationally. I have the power through a ministerial exemption to order catch and kill orders in those circumstances,’ she said, adding that it was the first time in a decade that the order had been made.

‘In the circumstances that we have here, which are quite unique, where the shark has been positively identified, remains in the vicinity following a fatal attack and is considered an ongoing threat, I have that authorisation.

‘This is not the return to the idea that we would cull all apex predators in the ocean. I don’t want to give people a false sense of security. I cannot mitigate all risks.’

Jarvis added that the capture of the shark was also linked to the potential recovery of coronial evidence.

The state government and city council previously co-funded an eco shark barrier at the beach in 2016 which was approximately 670m long and 400m wide. It was removed in 2020.

Richard Lailey, who lives 800m from Sorrento Beach, told The West there were some measures in place but he had had his own experience with a shark almost a year ago.

‘About a year ago to this day, I was one of a group of four kayakers down here that was circled by a great white shark for about 10 minutes,’ he said.

‘I also saw that the shark SMART drumline just over there was triggered about 10 days ago by a great white shark.

‘I think that the fact of the matter is, this happened a year ago, almost today, this is obviously the danger time. September and October, of course, is when the whales are travelling south, and that is the time to avoid swimming in the water.’

Mr Lailey addressed the absence of a shark net after the barrier was removed.

‘It was costly to maintain, and I believe that was the reason why it was taken away in the end, so maybe it’s time to put it back,’ he said.

‘We’ve got the prevailing southwesterlies here that come into this corner, and it takes a bit of a beating. In concept it was a great idea, but in practice it didn’t work out very well.’

The Daily Mail contacted the City of Joondalup for comment.