Sydney hostage taker identified as Man Haron Monis, an Iranian-born cleric and alleged sex offender

last updated 8 January 2015

The man who took more than a dozen people hostage at Sydney's Lindt Chocolate Cafe has been identified as Man Haron Monis, an Iranian-born cleric who earlier this year was charged with more than 50 counts of sexual assault. Monis, a self-proclaimed "spiritual healer," was charged with assaulting women who had sought his services in western Sydney in 2002.

That's not all: Monis came to the attention of Australian authorities after he mailed poisonous letters to the families of dead Australian soldiers over a two-year period beginning in 2007. Furthermore, in 2013 he was charged with abetting the murder of his former wife.