Three friends watched helplessly as a shark killed their companion in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef, and it was the second fatal attack in Australia in just eight days.
Story Snapshot
- A 39-year-old spearfisherman from Cairns was killed by a shark at Kennedy Shoal, roughly 40 kilometres off far north Queensland.
- The man was diving from a boat with three friends when the attack occurred, and his companions witnessed the fatal mauling.
- He died from a critical head injury sustained during the attack, according to police.
- The attack came only eight days after Perth spearfisherman Steve Mattabonni was fatally mauled near Rottnest Island off Western Australia.
What Happened at Kennedy Shoal
The 39-year-old Cairns man was spearfishing with three companions from a boat at Kennedy Shoal on Sunday when a shark attacked him. His friends were present in the water and witnessed the strike. He suffered a critical head injury and did not survive.
Queensland police confirmed the death, and the incident was reported across multiple outlets including CBS News, which quoted witnesses describing it as a “terrifying thing to see.” [6]
Shark kills spearfisher in front of friends in Australia: "Terrifying thing to see" https://t.co/LLVfE7X9jr
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 25, 2026
Kennedy Shoal sits approximately 40 kilometers off the Queensland coast, south of Cairns, within the Great Barrier Reef system. It is a remote coral reef location popular with serious spearfishers who target large pelagic fish in open water. That remoteness matters.
When something goes wrong 40 kilometers offshore, medical response is not minutes away. It is hours. The gap between a critical injury and any meaningful care is, in most cases, unsurvivable. [5]
Australia’s Second Fatal Shark Attack in Eight Days
The timing of this death is not coincidental to the national conversation now underway in Australia. Steve Mattabonni, an experienced spearfisherman from Perth, was fatally attacked by a shark on May 16 at a coral reef off Rottnest Island near the southwest coast of Western Australia. [1]
Eight days later, a second spearfisherman was dead under nearly identical circumstances. Two experienced men, both spearfishing in reef environments, both killed within a fortnight. That pattern demands more than routine condolences from officials.
Spearfishing carries a specific and well-documented risk profile that differs from general swimming or surfing. When a diver enters the water with a spear, catches fish, and holds bleeding prey in the water column, the chemical signals broadcast into the surrounding ocean are significant.
Sharks do not distinguish between the hunter and the hunted. The activity puts humans directly into a predator’s sensory environment in a way that passive water recreation does not. That is not a condemnation of spearfishing, but it is a fact that risk-aware divers understand going in. [4]
The Culling Debate Returns to Queensland
Fatal attacks of this frequency have predictably reignited the shark culling debate in Queensland. The argument for culling is straightforward: reduce the number of large sharks in areas frequented by humans and reduce the probability of fatal encounters.
Critics counter that culling disrupts marine ecosystems and indiscriminately targets species. Neither side has produced a clean resolution in decades of argument. What is clear is that two families are grieving in May 2026, and the policy conversation will outlast the news cycle by years. [4]
Spearfisher Killed in Shark Attack on Great Barrier Reef Off North Queensland https://t.co/Sroh16gsTv
— diverdowndeep (@diverdowndeep) May 25, 2026
The victim’s name has been reported as Michael Jensz in social media posts circulating after the attack. Official confirmation of the identity through Queensland police had not been fully verified in initial wire reports, which is standard practice while next of kin are notified.
What is confirmed across multiple independent news organizations is the age, location, activity, and fatal outcome. [2] [3]
The core facts of this tragedy are not in dispute. A man went into the ocean to do something he presumably loved, and he did not come back. His friends carry that image now. That is the part no official report fully captures.
Sources:
[1] Web – Spearfisher mauled in Australia’s second fatal shark attack in a week
[2] YouTube – Spearfisherman killed in Great Barrier Reef shark attack | 7NEWS
[3] YouTube – Spearfisherman dies after shark attack at Kennedy Shoal
[4] Web – Australian spearfisher killed in shark attack off Great Barrier Reef – …
[5] Web – Spear fisherman killed in second fatal shark attack in a week | 7NEWS
[6] Web – Shark kills spearfisher in front of friends in Australia: “Terrifying …
