Particle.news
Download on the App Store
6 ARTICLES
·
last mo.

Family and Friends Speak Out After Rottnest Shark Attack Kills Spearfisher

A rapid fundraiser has raised nearly $400,000 to support his wife and two young daughters.

Image
Steven Mattaboni is being remembered for his love of the ocean and his girls. He leaves behind his wife Shirene and two young daughters.
Steven Mattaboni died in a shark attack off Rottnest.
Steven Mattaboni smiling with on a boat while a young girl steers.

Overview

  • An experienced 38-year-old spearfisher, Steven Mattaboni, was bitten on the legs by a roughly four-metre shark while diving about 1 kilometre off Rottnest Island and could not be revived after friends raced him to shore last Saturday.
  • Those friends pulled him into their boat and performed CPR on the trip back to Geordie Bay jetty where paramedics and police continued life-saving attempts before he was pronounced dead.
  • Family and the Bluewater Freedivers community spoke publicly for the first time this week at a beach tribute, urging people to remember Mattaboni for his life as a devoted father and ocean conservationist.
  • A GoFundMe set up for his wife Shirene and their two daughters has raised roughly $375,000–$400,000, boosted by large anonymous gifts that supporters say will help provide for the family.
  • Authorities have kept patrols heightened and warned water users after recent shark sightings near Rottnest, a response that follows broader concerns about changing shark patterns and increased coastal activity.