Latest news with #Comanchero
ABC News
5 days ago
- ABC News
Man, teenage boy involved in underworld murder of father and son were 'novices'
A man and a teenage boy have been described in court as "novices" over their roles in the underworld killing of teenage gangster Salim Hamze and his innocent father Toufik in 2021. Suliman Hamza, now 23, and the teenager have pleaded guilty to being accessories after the fact to murdering the Hamzes. The teenage boy was 16 at the time of the underworld hit and cannot be identified for legal reasons. The Hamzes's daylight slaying on their front lawn were the sixth and seventh deaths stemming from a feud between the warring Hamzy and Alameddine clans. The rival families, who operate organised crime networks in Western Sydney, were locked in a bloody battle for control over the city's drug trade at the time. The feud would go on to draw in members of other Sydney crime families and the Comanchero bikie gang as the violence played out over two years. The court heard the boy, only identified as SH, "has some remorse for Toufik [Hamze]". He had no idea what he was involved in and was described as a "mushroom in the dark" by his legal team. "[Toufik Hamze], who he characterised as blameless … he had some sorrow that this man lost his life," his barrister told the Sydney District Court on Friday. "He was not getting on with his family, wanting to be a part of a group and seeing them as family, this is common in bikie groups but he's finally breaking through that. The pair were not involved in the shooting or the getaway, but were recruited to wipe forensic evidence from the vehicles seen fleeing the scene. Referencing how their DNA was left in one of the cars, and that of a previous owner, the boy's barrister said: "I wouldn't employ them to clean my home". When the duo were told to clean one of the getaway cars by a co-conspirator, Mr Hamza had to Google what Windex was used for, the court heard. Mr Hamza's barrister Avni Djemal SC said he had "no idea" the cars were used to kill two people. "The fact he had to look up Windex shows the type of novice," he said. "He is a very troubled young man, he's come from a background of abject poverty." Crown prosecutor Mitchell Paish described Mr Hamza as "the pivot" and described how he was "directing others". Mr Hamze, 18, was targeted due to suspicions he was the gunman who killed rival drug dealer Shady Kanj two months before he met his own end. "The father died for the sins of the son," then-Homicide Squad Commander Danny Doherty said at the time. The teenager and his father, 64, died in a hail of bullets getting into a red ute outside their Guildford family home on October 20, 2021. Police believe the trigger man for the killing is one of Mr Hamze's best friends, Zaid Abdelhafez, who fled overseas after the attack. Mr Abdelhafez, 22, is currently wanted on a warrant for two counts of murder, though his whereabouts is unknown to law enforcement. Alameddine family patriarch Rafat Alameddine and associate John Bayssari are also wanted on warrants for arranging the murders, but both have fled to Lebanon. If Mr Hamza and the boy are convicted they will be two of just a handful police have so far managed to secure in relation to the 33 gangland killings that have plagued Sydney for the past five years. Mr Hamza and the boy will be sentenced back in the same court next week.
Sydney Morning Herald
6 days ago
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
$110,000 payment for union peace: Developer's deal in spotlight amid fresh calls to clean up industry
A gangland associate was paid $110,000 by a Gold Coast developer to strike a deal with the CFMEU's Queensland branch four months after the Albanese government forced the union into administration. The revelation of the Sunshine State deal, along with several other alarming new case studies, has prompted a major public intervention by the federal Labor-appointed CFMEU administrator, who is now urging conservative Queensland premier David Crisafulli to use his planned commission of inquiry into the union to attack the underworld. Administrator Mark Irving, SC, has also demanded the Albanese, Allan and Minns' governments shift their 'focus on crime and corruption across the industry'. The Sunshine State deal involved an attempt by Queensland-Melbourne joint venture Glen Q to secure industrial peace on the Gold Coast and culminated in a meeting between the CFMEU's Queensland co-ordinator Matt Vonhoff and Melbourne gangland associate John Khoury. Construction union sources who have spoken to authorities have confirmed the dealings were uncovered during recent federal police raids. The raids unearthed a money trail linking a front company in the name of Khoury's accountant to Glen Q's 16-level project a short drive from Crisafulli's Gold Coast seat. The sources said that acting as a fixer in the Gold Coast affair was Melbourne construction boss turned Queensland government contractor Nick Maric. Maric has for years had Khoury and his business partner Mick Gatto on a retainer to deal with the CFMEU. Revelations about the case have emerged amid separate details of persistent gangland activity in Queensland and down the eastern seaboard. They include a surge of industry involvement by the feared Comanchero bikie gang, including cases in Sydney and Brisbane, the latter in which a Melbourne Comanchero flying squad flew north and allegedly threatened a CFMEU representative. The bikies were ostensibly working with a security and labour hire contractor subcontracted to national construction giant BMD.
The Age
6 days ago
- Business
- The Age
$110,000 payment for union peace: Developer's deal in spotlight amid fresh calls to clean up industry
A gangland associate was paid $110,000 by a Gold Coast developer to strike a deal with the CFMEU's Queensland branch four months after the Albanese government forced the union into administration. The revelation of the Sunshine State deal, along with several other alarming new case studies, has prompted a major public intervention by the federal Labor-appointed CFMEU administrator, who is now urging conservative Queensland premier David Crisafulli to use his planned commission of inquiry into the union to attack the underworld. Administrator Mark Irving, SC, has also demanded the Albanese, Allan and Minns' governments shift their 'focus on crime and corruption across the industry'. The Sunshine State deal involved an attempt by Queensland-Melbourne joint venture Glen Q to secure industrial peace on the Gold Coast and culminated in a meeting between the CFMEU's Queensland co-ordinator Matt Vonhoff and Melbourne gangland associate John Khoury. Construction union sources who have spoken to authorities have confirmed the dealings were uncovered during recent federal police raids. The raids unearthed a money trail linking a front company in the name of Khoury's accountant to Glen Q's 16-level project a short drive from Crisafulli's Gold Coast seat. The sources said that acting as a fixer in the Gold Coast affair was Melbourne construction boss turned Queensland government contractor Nick Maric. Maric has for years had Khoury and his business partner Mick Gatto on a retainer to deal with the CFMEU. Revelations about the case have emerged amid separate details of persistent gangland activity in Queensland and down the eastern seaboard. They include a surge of industry involvement by the feared Comanchero bikie gang, including cases in Sydney and Brisbane, the latter in which a Melbourne Comanchero flying squad flew north and allegedly threatened a CFMEU representative. The bikies were ostensibly working with a security and labour hire contractor subcontracted to national construction giant BMD.
Herald Sun
19-07-2025
- Herald Sun
Finks v Comanchero: Gang recruitment war sparks chaos in Melbourne
Don't miss out on the headlines from Victoria. Followed categories will be added to My News. The rival Finks and Comanchero bikie gangs are locked in a bitter Melbourne power struggle. A wave of fires in recent months which have cost millions of dollars is suspected of being linked to conflict between the clubs. The Herald Sun has been told one theory is that aggressive Fink recruitment of Comanchero members is behind the friction. The practice, known as 'patching-over', is regarded as a provocative move in the outlaw motorcycle gang world. In the past, it has been carried-out without incident in cases where the club doing the patching has vastly more strength than its rival. But the Finks and Comanchero are strong well-established gangs with money and muscle behind them. Underworld sources say a number of suburban businesses have gone up in flames in the tit-for-tat arsons of recent months. Both clubs are regarded as being in Australia's 'big six' outlaw motorcycle gangs, OMCGs. The Comanchero have been hit hard in recent years by prosecutions of some high-ranked members, particularly in fallout from the sprawling Ironside police operation. A number of senior members have been charged and some valued middle-ranking figures have departed on bad terms. But they remain potent and are aligned with exiled crime strongman Kazem Hamad and another shadowy gangland figure operating from offshore. Long-time office-bearer and businessman Bemir Saracevic is still influential in the organisation. Prominent figure Tarek Zahed left Melbourne in 2022 and was shot later that year in a Sydney ambush which claimed the life of his brother Omar. Zahed has been expected to be headed back to Victoria this year after his release from a NSW prison last Christmas. The Comanchero clubhouse at Clyde North was firebombed last month though the motive is not publicly known. The Finks are an expansionist club with strong representation in the outer suburbs and parts of country Victoria. They were on the wrong end of a patch-over in 2013 when many of their members were forced into the Mongols, leading to lingering bad blood which had dire consequences in 2019. Senior Fink Sione Hokafonu was shot late at night in that year outside the Fountain Gate Hotel following an altercation with a man in Mongol gear. Police believe the near-fatal shooting of Mongol Rocco Curra at Bulleen later that year was fallout from that incident. Investigators suspect a Finks member may have been the intended target of an ambush by two Mongols in which innocent fruiterer Paul Virgona was fatally wounded in November of that year. Koshan Radford is believed to be still at the helm of the Finks. Former Comanchero and Mongol Mark Balsillie came on board last year and is one of the club's most senior figures. A group of Finks — among them Hokafonu and Jesse Bonnici — were charged last year after allegedly riding their motorcycles along Southbank Promenade. Counts of reckless conduct endangering serious injury and dangerous driving were later dismissed. A number of members have been previously implicated in illicit tobacco sector arsons and standover work. Murat Shomshe was recently jailed for lighting up tobacco shops at Moe and Croydon in late-2023.
The Advertiser
02-07-2025
- The Advertiser
Parking rangers foiled alleged murder plot: prosecutors
A close associate of a slain drug kingpin avoided being killed in a police station hit job because parking inspectors spotted an illegally parked getaway car, prosecutors claim. Andre Kallita was almost gunned down outside the Day Street police station in Sydney's CBD in an alleged December 2023 plot by associates of Bilal Haouchar's Lebanon-based crime syndicate. Bilal's younger brother Omar Haouchar, 32, has been charged over the attempted murder plot. He's been accused of using the handle 'Invisible' on the encrypted messaging app Threema to organise the plot with several others. In early 2023, a dispute arose between the Haouchar crime network and the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang over a drug debt, documents filed with the NSW Supreme Court reveal. Kallita was allegedly a member of the Comancheros and was a close associate of cocaine kingpin Alen Moridian, who himself was gunned down in a Bondi Junction car park in June 2023, the documents say. Various alleged members of the Kallita murder plot have been accused of participating in the Moridian murder. Prosecutors claim Omar Haouchar was part of a conspiracy to murder Kallita, and there was enough circumstantial evidence to prove he used the Threema handle 'Invisible'. Defence lawyers have rejected the allegations at previous bail hearings, saying there was no link between their client and the Threema username. A chat titled 'Urgent' discussed staking out the police station, having a car with two "hitters" waiting nearby and possible use of a drone. Invisible eventually called off the plan, police documents reveal. "Boys I'm gona (sic) shut this group down as know one (sic) is interested clearly," he wrote on December 9. The plot was then taken up by others - without Omar Haouchar's involvement - including two men going by the usernames Stone Cold and NightWing, court documents reveal. Under the alleged plan, a burner phone was sourced and three stolen getaway cars were parked across Sydney - all of which would have been destroyed by fire afterwards. "Do not panic or rush anything or it will turn into a mess," NightWing wrote the day before the alleged attempted murder. "Make sure target is down and dead." One of the "spotters" in the stake-out car was offered $80,000 while the actual shooter could have earned up to $800,000, police allege. While everyone was in place outside Day Street police station, the plan was called off after parking rangers spotted one of the getaway cars parked illegally nearby. "There's people around hit car and ticket guy," NightWing wrote. "Bros said wrap it up. Come again Wednesday. Safety first" A second murder attempt was planned, however the shooter was arrested by police before that could occur. Omar Haouchar was arrested over the alleged plot in January. The 32-year-old has not yet entered a plea to the single charge of conspiracy to murder. At a bail hearing in June, he proposed putting up a cemetery as security to support his release into the community. A decision over whether he will be released has not yet been made. Kallita is believed to be overseas, court documents reveal. The Haouchar syndicate has been tied to $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency transactions and various firearm, drug, tobacco and money-laundering offences, police said previously. Bilal Haouchar is in a Lebanese prison serving an eight-year sentence, according to court documents. A close associate of a slain drug kingpin avoided being killed in a police station hit job because parking inspectors spotted an illegally parked getaway car, prosecutors claim. Andre Kallita was almost gunned down outside the Day Street police station in Sydney's CBD in an alleged December 2023 plot by associates of Bilal Haouchar's Lebanon-based crime syndicate. Bilal's younger brother Omar Haouchar, 32, has been charged over the attempted murder plot. He's been accused of using the handle 'Invisible' on the encrypted messaging app Threema to organise the plot with several others. In early 2023, a dispute arose between the Haouchar crime network and the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang over a drug debt, documents filed with the NSW Supreme Court reveal. Kallita was allegedly a member of the Comancheros and was a close associate of cocaine kingpin Alen Moridian, who himself was gunned down in a Bondi Junction car park in June 2023, the documents say. Various alleged members of the Kallita murder plot have been accused of participating in the Moridian murder. Prosecutors claim Omar Haouchar was part of a conspiracy to murder Kallita, and there was enough circumstantial evidence to prove he used the Threema handle 'Invisible'. Defence lawyers have rejected the allegations at previous bail hearings, saying there was no link between their client and the Threema username. A chat titled 'Urgent' discussed staking out the police station, having a car with two "hitters" waiting nearby and possible use of a drone. Invisible eventually called off the plan, police documents reveal. "Boys I'm gona (sic) shut this group down as know one (sic) is interested clearly," he wrote on December 9. The plot was then taken up by others - without Omar Haouchar's involvement - including two men going by the usernames Stone Cold and NightWing, court documents reveal. Under the alleged plan, a burner phone was sourced and three stolen getaway cars were parked across Sydney - all of which would have been destroyed by fire afterwards. "Do not panic or rush anything or it will turn into a mess," NightWing wrote the day before the alleged attempted murder. "Make sure target is down and dead." One of the "spotters" in the stake-out car was offered $80,000 while the actual shooter could have earned up to $800,000, police allege. While everyone was in place outside Day Street police station, the plan was called off after parking rangers spotted one of the getaway cars parked illegally nearby. "There's people around hit car and ticket guy," NightWing wrote. "Bros said wrap it up. Come again Wednesday. Safety first" A second murder attempt was planned, however the shooter was arrested by police before that could occur. Omar Haouchar was arrested over the alleged plot in January. The 32-year-old has not yet entered a plea to the single charge of conspiracy to murder. At a bail hearing in June, he proposed putting up a cemetery as security to support his release into the community. A decision over whether he will be released has not yet been made. Kallita is believed to be overseas, court documents reveal. The Haouchar syndicate has been tied to $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency transactions and various firearm, drug, tobacco and money-laundering offences, police said previously. Bilal Haouchar is in a Lebanese prison serving an eight-year sentence, according to court documents. A close associate of a slain drug kingpin avoided being killed in a police station hit job because parking inspectors spotted an illegally parked getaway car, prosecutors claim. Andre Kallita was almost gunned down outside the Day Street police station in Sydney's CBD in an alleged December 2023 plot by associates of Bilal Haouchar's Lebanon-based crime syndicate. Bilal's younger brother Omar Haouchar, 32, has been charged over the attempted murder plot. He's been accused of using the handle 'Invisible' on the encrypted messaging app Threema to organise the plot with several others. In early 2023, a dispute arose between the Haouchar crime network and the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang over a drug debt, documents filed with the NSW Supreme Court reveal. Kallita was allegedly a member of the Comancheros and was a close associate of cocaine kingpin Alen Moridian, who himself was gunned down in a Bondi Junction car park in June 2023, the documents say. Various alleged members of the Kallita murder plot have been accused of participating in the Moridian murder. Prosecutors claim Omar Haouchar was part of a conspiracy to murder Kallita, and there was enough circumstantial evidence to prove he used the Threema handle 'Invisible'. Defence lawyers have rejected the allegations at previous bail hearings, saying there was no link between their client and the Threema username. A chat titled 'Urgent' discussed staking out the police station, having a car with two "hitters" waiting nearby and possible use of a drone. Invisible eventually called off the plan, police documents reveal. "Boys I'm gona (sic) shut this group down as know one (sic) is interested clearly," he wrote on December 9. The plot was then taken up by others - without Omar Haouchar's involvement - including two men going by the usernames Stone Cold and NightWing, court documents reveal. Under the alleged plan, a burner phone was sourced and three stolen getaway cars were parked across Sydney - all of which would have been destroyed by fire afterwards. "Do not panic or rush anything or it will turn into a mess," NightWing wrote the day before the alleged attempted murder. "Make sure target is down and dead." One of the "spotters" in the stake-out car was offered $80,000 while the actual shooter could have earned up to $800,000, police allege. While everyone was in place outside Day Street police station, the plan was called off after parking rangers spotted one of the getaway cars parked illegally nearby. "There's people around hit car and ticket guy," NightWing wrote. "Bros said wrap it up. Come again Wednesday. Safety first" A second murder attempt was planned, however the shooter was arrested by police before that could occur. Omar Haouchar was arrested over the alleged plot in January. The 32-year-old has not yet entered a plea to the single charge of conspiracy to murder. At a bail hearing in June, he proposed putting up a cemetery as security to support his release into the community. A decision over whether he will be released has not yet been made. Kallita is believed to be overseas, court documents reveal. The Haouchar syndicate has been tied to $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency transactions and various firearm, drug, tobacco and money-laundering offences, police said previously. Bilal Haouchar is in a Lebanese prison serving an eight-year sentence, according to court documents. A close associate of a slain drug kingpin avoided being killed in a police station hit job because parking inspectors spotted an illegally parked getaway car, prosecutors claim. Andre Kallita was almost gunned down outside the Day Street police station in Sydney's CBD in an alleged December 2023 plot by associates of Bilal Haouchar's Lebanon-based crime syndicate. Bilal's younger brother Omar Haouchar, 32, has been charged over the attempted murder plot. He's been accused of using the handle 'Invisible' on the encrypted messaging app Threema to organise the plot with several others. In early 2023, a dispute arose between the Haouchar crime network and the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang over a drug debt, documents filed with the NSW Supreme Court reveal. Kallita was allegedly a member of the Comancheros and was a close associate of cocaine kingpin Alen Moridian, who himself was gunned down in a Bondi Junction car park in June 2023, the documents say. Various alleged members of the Kallita murder plot have been accused of participating in the Moridian murder. Prosecutors claim Omar Haouchar was part of a conspiracy to murder Kallita, and there was enough circumstantial evidence to prove he used the Threema handle 'Invisible'. Defence lawyers have rejected the allegations at previous bail hearings, saying there was no link between their client and the Threema username. A chat titled 'Urgent' discussed staking out the police station, having a car with two "hitters" waiting nearby and possible use of a drone. Invisible eventually called off the plan, police documents reveal. "Boys I'm gona (sic) shut this group down as know one (sic) is interested clearly," he wrote on December 9. The plot was then taken up by others - without Omar Haouchar's involvement - including two men going by the usernames Stone Cold and NightWing, court documents reveal. Under the alleged plan, a burner phone was sourced and three stolen getaway cars were parked across Sydney - all of which would have been destroyed by fire afterwards. "Do not panic or rush anything or it will turn into a mess," NightWing wrote the day before the alleged attempted murder. "Make sure target is down and dead." One of the "spotters" in the stake-out car was offered $80,000 while the actual shooter could have earned up to $800,000, police allege. While everyone was in place outside Day Street police station, the plan was called off after parking rangers spotted one of the getaway cars parked illegally nearby. "There's people around hit car and ticket guy," NightWing wrote. "Bros said wrap it up. Come again Wednesday. Safety first" A second murder attempt was planned, however the shooter was arrested by police before that could occur. Omar Haouchar was arrested over the alleged plot in January. The 32-year-old has not yet entered a plea to the single charge of conspiracy to murder. At a bail hearing in June, he proposed putting up a cemetery as security to support his release into the community. A decision over whether he will be released has not yet been made. Kallita is believed to be overseas, court documents reveal. The Haouchar syndicate has been tied to $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency transactions and various firearm, drug, tobacco and money-laundering offences, police said previously. Bilal Haouchar is in a Lebanese prison serving an eight-year sentence, according to court documents.
