Latest news with #OaksEstate
ABC News
14-07-2025
- ABC News
Man cleared of all charges over Oaks Estate shooting that left victim with 84 pellets in his body
A man accused of a shooting at Oaks Estate last year has been found not guilty by the ACT Supreme Court, after the judge found she couldn't rule out that someone else was responsible. Bronson Cross, 21, was charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm, endangering life and unauthorised use of a firearm. The court heard the shooting happened when the victim and a woman were walking along a street at Oaks Estate at night. The pair described seeing a small orange car go past, then turn and come slowly towards them. The car stopped and a person got out saying to the victim "Is that you [victim]?" The face of the person from the car was obscured with a covering, he was wearing a light coloured top and dark pants and carrying a gun. When the victim answered yes, words were exchanged between the pair, with the driver saying to the victim "do you want to get f***ing shot?" The victim pointed out that there were police in the next street conducting a search warrant on his brother's house. The driver yelled "motherf***er", as he fired at the victim before fleeing the scene. The woman had hidden behind a tree, before the pair ran for help, and the victim was taken to hospital. In court the victim said he had "freaked out" and felt like his face was in pieces. He told the court he still has 84 pellets in his body, despite surgery to repair the damage. Later the victim said he was sure the man who shot him was Bronson Cross, who he thought was carrying a grudge due to a dispute some time before. He told the court he had recognised his voice. The sole issue in the trial was the identification of the shooter. Mr Cross denied it was him. Justice Taylor said the CCTV footage showed the interaction lasted only 28 seconds. She questioned whether the victim could be sure it was Mr Cross. "The gunman's mouth was entirely concealed by what appeared to be dark fabric which could have provided some muffling effect," Justice Taylor said. "[The victim] had a firearm pointed in his direction, clearly perceived that he was at risk of harm from the gunman and was ultimately injured because of a shot fired in his direction." Attention turned to the car, which had been seen parked in the vicinity of the home of Mr Cross's grandmother. Justice Taylor said the prosecution had sought to establish a link between Mr Cross and the car. "That link … does not exclude the accused's brother," Justice Taylor said. The court had already heard Mr Cross and his brother looked very much alike. There was also another man who used to drive the car. "There is no other physical piece of evidence which ties, links or connects the accused to the shooting," Justice Taylor said. But there was another issue the prosecution said tied Mr Cross to the crime, after a taped telephone call between him and his mother while he was in custody, which they said was an admission of guilt. The accused: Because they've got no evidence. Like, it's bullshit. The accused's mother: It doesn't matter. Did he see you? Did he see your face? The accused: No. "It is equally and reasonably plausible in the context of the conversation, that the accused was communicating to his mother that [the victim] did not see his face because it was not him or that the evidence as he had been led to understand by his lawyer, did not reveal that [the victim] saw his face," Justice Taylor said. In the end Justice Taylor said Mr Cross was entitled to the benefit of the doubt. "The nature of the interaction does not rule out the accused's brother as the gunman," Justice Taylor said. "Indeed, the gunman's question to [the victim], 'Is that you [name]?', is consistent with a person seeking to confirm his identity. "On [the victim's] version of his interactions with the accused their familiarity with each other limited any need for the accused to confirm that it was him. Justice Taylor said she could not find Mr Cross guilty of the shooting, beyond a reasonable doubt, and acquitted him of the three charges.
ABC News
12-06-2025
- ABC News
Court hears of 'bad blood' between alleged Oaks Estate shooter and victim
Prosecutors in the trial of a man allegedly involved in a shooting at Oaks Estate last year say the victim still has shotgun pellets lodged in his body. The victim and a woman had been walking on George Street in Oaks Estate at the time of the shooting, the court heard, after the victim's brother's house one street over was raided by police and they were asked to leave. It is alleged the pair saw an orange or gold coloured hatchback with no number plates drive past, which then did a U-Turn and stopped. In a recorded interview with police — played to the court — the woman told officers then-20-year-old Bronson Cross got out of the car with a shotgun and approached them saying: "Do you want to get shot?" The woman said she hid behind a tree while the victim talked to Mr Cross, telling him there were police nearby. Mr Cross allegedly shot the victim, who then ran down the road to seek help. "I didn't think he'd been shot because he ran," the woman told police. She said she also ran, fearing Mr Cross would fire another shot. Prosecutor Nathan Deakes told the court a man who'd been visiting his son in Oaks Estate heard a "loud bang" at about 1am that morning. When the man went outside, he was approached by the victim who told him: "Bronson Cross shot me". The court heard the victim was taken to the Queanbeyan Hospital and was later transferred to the Canberra Hospital, where he required a chest drain and surgery to remove shotgun pellets. Mr Deakes said Mr Cross and the victim knew each other from school but there had been some "bad blood" between them, including a physical altercation in the years before the shooting. Mr Cross was arrested on May 1, 2024 and extradited to the ACT accused of firearms offences and inflicting grievous bodily harm. Police released a CCTV image and photographs of the car which they allege Mr Cross was driving — later identified as a Nissan Micra. The prosecution alleged Mr Cross has been linked to the vehicle, with the identification of the offender the primary issue in the case. The trial continues.
