Latest news with #SylvanSingh
News.com.au
27-05-2025
- News.com.au
Dawood Zakaria: Alleged Alameddine associate dies after being shot in head
A man who was ambushed and shot in the head during an allegedly targeted drive-by shooting has died in hospital. Dawood Zakaria was shot in the head inside a Toyota HiLux while it was turning onto Woodville Road, in Granville, about 5pm on Sunday. The 32-year-old died on Tuesday afternoon after being rushed to hospital in a critical condition and undergoing surgery. Police said earlier in the week he had not been expected to survive. It is understood Mr Zakaria was an alleged gangland associate. Another passenger in the front seat, Sydney lawyer Syvlan Singh, suffered arm and leg gunshot injuries. He remains in a stable condition. It is understood gunshots were allegedly intended for Alameddine crime gang member Samimjan Azari, who was in the back seat with his bodyguard Levi Vitukawalu. Both were uninjured in the ordeal. The men had reportedly just attended Mr Azari's bail hearing, joined by Mr Singh – who has no links to the underworld other than his work. It is the second time an attempt on Mr Azari's life has been carried out, escaping another attempted hit in Brighton Le Sands – where he was in a group alongside Mr Zakaria – uninjured three months ago. Strike Force Arrino has been established to investigate the shooting, and will be overseen by Taskforce Falcon. The taskforce is a combination of 13 strike forces to investigate a arson, kidnappings and public shootings since December 2024. 'The recent violence on our streets is horrific,' NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley said. 'We won't tolerate these lawless thugs playing out their vendettas in our communities. 'When innocent people get caught up in them and are made to suffer it's sickening and barbaric. 'We will not tolerate these lawless thugs getting out there with their vendetta against each other and putting in danger members of our community.' Anyone with information, dashcam footage or CCTV vision of the incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Daily Mail
27-05-2025
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Major update on Allameddine associate shot in the head in brazen drive-by shooting amid fears Sydney's gangland war will explode again
A man with links to the Alameddine crime gang shot in the head during a drive-by shooting has died in hospital. Police were called to Church Street beneath the M4 overpass at Granville in western Sydney shortly after 5pm on Sunday after a gunman opened fire on a white Toyota HiLux ute occupied by four men waiting at the traffic lights. Alameddine associate Dawood Zakaria, 32, was shot in the head while solicitor Sylvan Singh, 25, was struck in the arm and leg. Singh is understood to have been an innocent victim caught up in the latest episode of Sydney's gangland war. He remains in hospital in a stable condition. Police revealed on Monday that Zakaria had undergone surgery in Westmead Hospital and was on life support and not expected to survive the second attempt on his life. He has since died in hospital.
Daily Mail
26-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Heartstopping dashcam emerges of the dramatic aftermath of a brazen drive-by shooting - as police give an update on who the REAL target was
Dashcam footage has emerged of the dramatic moments after a ute carrying two associates of the Alameddine crime gang was targeted in a drive-by shooting on one of Sydney 's busiest roads. Detectives believe Samimjan Azari, 26, was the intended target of the shooting on Church Street beneath the M4 overpass in Granville on Sunday night. The alleged Alameddine crime gang leader was in the backseat of a Toyota HiLux ute with his 'bodyguard' Levi Vitukawalu, 28, at the time. Both were uninjured. However, the two men sitting in the front - fellow Alameddine associate Dawood Zakaria, 32, and solicitor Sylvan Singh - both suffered gunshot wounds. Zakaria was shot in the head and remains on life support in hospital. Police don't expect him to survive. Mr Singh suffered wounds to his upper body and is a stable condition. He doesn't have any underworld links aside from his work in the legal field. Police said Sunday's incident was the third shooting in a 'tit for tat' internal war within the powerful Alameddine crime clan. Dashcam footage showed the HiLux travelling in the opposite direction suddenly mounting the median strip on Woodville Road and swerving into oncoming traffic moments after seven shots were fired from a black Mercedes. The ute pulled over moments later under the M4 overpass, where passing motorists also stopped to help the two injured men. It's understood the gunmen was following the HiLux from a police station, where Azari had just reported for bail over an alleged armed robbery. Azari was seen sitting on a footpath near the scene of the shooting on Sunday night while surrounded by police officers on Sunday. Both his hands were covered with evidence bags. Police allegedly found a firearm inside the HiLux and later charged Azari and Vitukawalu with possession of an unauthorised pistol and acquiring pistol subject to firearms prohibition order. The pair appeared in Parramatta Local Court on Monday, where police prosecutor Kye Jiang opposed bail for Azari amid fears his 'senior role' in the Alameddine gang could cause further bloodshed, the Daily Telegraph reported. 'There will be further bloodshed on the streets, the streets will not be safe, and it's all because of his holding in the Alameddine network,' Sergeant Jiang said. 'This is the third shooting at the epicentre of this particular tit for tat feud between particular organised criminal networks.' Solicitor Sylvan Singh (pictured), who is not associated with the gang aside from his work in the legal field, suffered gunshot wounds to his upper-body Azari and his 'bodyguard' Levi Vitukawalu (pictured) were charged with possession and granted bail in Parramatta Local Court on Monday Sergeant Jiang told the court police were able to link the HiLux to Azari following months of police investigation and surveillance. He added the need for Azari to travel with 'bodyguards' was an indication of an intense 'feud' in the gang. 'The firearm… the tinted windows… the need for two bodyguards is consistent with the position of a high-ranking member of the organisation who has already had an attempt on his life,' Sergeant Jiang said. The court also heard that Sunday's shooting was the second attempt on the lives of Azari and Zakaria within months. The pair previously survived another targeted shooting earlier this year at Brighton-Le-Sands in Sydney's south. Azari's solicitor Christopher Parkin, described the prosecution's case as 'weak' and claimed they had little evidence linking the gun to Azari. 'There's nothing in the Crown case to suggest it was Mr Azari's,' Mr Parkin said. 'Attending the police station in the presence of a solicitor, knowing he was in possession of a gun, whilst subject to a firearms prohibition, just defies belief.' Magistrate Bryan Robinson agreed and granted both Azarti and Vitukawalu bail. The pair are banned from associating with anyone else who was in the HiLux at the time of the shooting as part of their bail conditions. Those responsible for the shooting remain at large. An abandoned Mercedes was found alight a short time later in a carpark 3.5km away near the intersection of Sherwood Road and Todd St in Merrylands West. A second torched vehicle was later found in the neighbouring suburb of Woodpark. Police are putting numerous resources into the investigation under Strike Force Arrino. 'I believe … everyone in that vehicle was potentially an intended target,' Criminal Groups Squad boss Superintendent Jason Box told reporters on Monday. 'There's one shooter, but potentially two that have fired at the vehicle.' NSW Premier Chris Minns condemned those involved in the 'horrifying' attack and said they would be 'met with the full force of the law'. 'It's naked violence on Sydney streets, and I want to make it clear that NSW Police put enormous resources into it. If you're caught in relation to one of these horrifying acts of violence or murder that you can expect to spend most of the rest of your life in a small jail cell,' Premier Minns said. 'This is appalling behaviour. It needs to be met with the full force of the law, and that's what will happen.' Police urge anyone with information or dashcam footage related to the shooting to come forward. The latest shooting comes just days after tradie John Versace, 23, who had no links to organised crime, was gunned down in a hail of bullets at his doorstep in Condell Park in the city's south-west. Police are investigating whether the murder was a case of mistaken identity and don't believes it's linked to Sunday's shooting.
ABC News
26-05-2025
- ABC News
Crime figure and lawyer shot in Granville street as gangland violence escalates
A man with links to the Alameddine crime family and a Sydney solicitor have been shot in what police believe is the latest escalation in underworld violence. Dawood Zakaria, 32, remains in hospital after being shot inside a car on Church Street, Granville just after 5pm on Sunday. Also injured was Sydney lawyer Sylvan Singh, who works at a nearby Parramatta law firm and was admitted as a solicitor in 2023. Their Toyota Hilux was sitting at a red light under the M4 overpass when the gunman opened fire. Mr Zakaria is the brother of notorious underworld figure Masood Zakaria, who was extradited from Turkey last year to face charges stemming from the attempted hit on rival Ibrahem Hamze in 2021. The charges relate to two failed attempts on Hamze's life at the height of the gangland war between his and the Alameddine families in Western Sydney. The majority of the Alameddine crime network remain in Lebanon, where leader Rafat Alameddine is also wanted on a warrant for charges relating to the same conspiracy to kill Hamze. Mr Zakaria and Mr Singh were among four people in the car at the time when the gunman opened fire. The two other occupants were unharmed in the shooting but have been charged with firearm offences and refused bail. The men, 28 and 26, will front Parramatta Local Court today charged with possessing a pistol and acquiring a pistol. Police are investigating whether a car set alight a short time later in Sherwood Street, Merrylands West, was the getaway vehicle. The shooting is the third in a fortnight police are attributing to rising tensions in Sydney's underworld. Last Tuesday 23-year-old plumber John Versace was gunned down outside his family home in Condell Park. He is understood to have no criminal links police are aware of and only had a traffic offence on his record when he was shot dead. A week before that, a 29-year-old man escaped an attempt on his life in Yennora after he was ambushed by a gunman while parking his truck.
News.com.au
25-05-2025
- News.com.au
Horror scenes as two shot on Sydney street in suspected underworld attack
Two men, one with links to the Alameddine crime gang and the other a solicitor, are fighting for their lives after they were shot in a public attack in Sydney's west on Sunday evening. Alameddine associate Dawood Zakaria was shot in the head, and legal professional Sylvan Singh in the arm and leg, when a gunman opened fire on the white Toyota HiLux ute as they waited at a red light on Church St in Granville, underneath the M4 overpass, about 5.10pm, The Daily Telegraph reports. Witnesses said the car containing Zakaria, Singh and two other men was set upon as it waited at the busy intersection, which is right on the border of Granville and Parramatta in the heart of Sydney's west. The incident is a suspected underworld attack. A court heard in March how Zakaria had been among a group targeted in a broad daylight shooting at Brighton-Le-Sands earlier this year, in which no one was injured. He is now fighting for life in a critical condition in hospital, with multiple gunshot wounds, while Singh who is understood to have been an innocent victim caught in the crossfire, was said to be in a stable condition. Police were called to the scene following reports of a shooting and located two men suffering multiple gunshot wounds in a car. The injured men were treated at the scene by NSW Ambulance paramedics and taken to hospital. Another two men, who were uninjured, were also located inside the vehicle. A short time later, police were called to Sherwood St in Merrylands where they located a car and nearby tree well alight. Fire and Rescue NSW were able to extinguish the blaze, but not before the vehicle was destroyed.
