Some 150 police thrown at hunt for 'lawless thugs'
A mega police task force designed to crush criminal activities of gangs in one state has been launched after a spate of public shootings.
Taskforce Falcon in NSW will oversee and try to bring to justice alleged criminals behind public place shootings, arson attacks and kidnappings, dating back to December.
The 150-strong taskforce, including 100 detectives, will oversee and co-ordinate more than a dozen investigations.
The ninth of those shootings came on Sunday when a driver was left fighting for life after being ambushed on a busy road in western Sydney.
"We will not tolerate these lawless thugs getting out there with their vendettas against each other and putting in danger innocent victims in our community," Police Minister Yasmin Catley told reporters on Tuesday.
"Public safety is the number one priority for the NSW police force."
In a pointed message to would-be criminals, she said, "You are going to end up in a small cell for the rest of your life."
Deputy Commissioner David Hudson explained the uptick in violence was most likely related to gang turf wars over drugs spilling out on the streets.
He vowed that any criminals, whether they played a small or large role, would be on the police's radar.
"We will pursue all those involved, whether you're staging a vehicle to be used as a getaway vehicle, steering that vehicle, where you are pulling the trigger for hire, or whether you are the person who orchestrated the contract on that individual," he said.
In the latest escalation of gangland violence on Sunday, at least one person in a Mercedes fired several rounds at a Toyota HiLux turning into a busy road in Granville, hitting the driver and front-seat passenger.
The 32-year-old driver of the ute underwent surgery and remained in a critical condition, police said on Monday, but he is unlikely to survive his multiple gunshot wounds.
Video circulating online showed the front-seat passenger, a 25-year-old lawyer, bleeding on the side of the road.
He was in a stable condition in hospital.
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Sydney Morning Herald
11 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Harassing staff, haranguing customers: fresh complaints against top chef
'I was young at the time but it just felt all wrong,' she said. Jacinta said that Barbagallo routinely partied with staff and openly consumed cocaine. On one occasion, Jacinta alleges he insisted she come back to his house after a nightclub where he offered her cocaine, which she declined, while she waited for friend to pick her up. She claimed Barbagallo then made a sexual advance which she rejected. 'I was like, 'Yeah, this is not happening.' I just pretty much walked out.' Loading Jacinta alleges Barbagallo then treated her differently at work. 'That's when things got really bad,' she said, citing one example where he chastised her over a flower arrangement. 'He completely lost his shit. He threw something at me. I had customers follow me outside the restaurant who were like, 'Are you okay?'' Jacinta said she was paid a settlement after lodging an unfair dismissal claim at the Fair Work Commission. She said she had acquired formal qualifications and had previously wanted to build a hospitality career, but the experience had turned her off. 'It was disappointing for me because I really did enjoy the job,' she said. 'Any aspirations I had in the hospitality industry … that kind of just killed the buzz for that.' The second woman worked at Barbagallo's venue in Lonsdale Street in Melbourne's CBD. She said there were often cocaine bags in his office as well as numerous parking fines because he would park his car illegally on the street in front of the restaurant. 'The police came because he would park his Mercedes right out the front of Lonsdale Street,' she said. 'For months prior to that, he had just been racking up daily parking fines.' She described Barbagallo as a 'workplace predator' due to his outbursts, sexually inappropriate behaviour and other conduct, and alleged he gave his staff cocaine during shifts, sometimes as early as 11am. She alleged that he propositioned her one night when she was intoxicated. 'I'm so used to men behaving like that,' she said. 'In hospitality land back then, you almost forget about it.' She also alleges frequent aggressive behaviour from Barbagallo. On one occasion, she claimed he threw a bottle of red wine at customers who complained about a burnt pizza. 'I thought a bomb went off,' she said. 'The red wine went everywhere, all over the 12 people that were sitting there. Children were there.' She said she had told him his behaviour was unacceptable and claims she was then fired. She describes Barbagallo as the 'most delusional' person she's ever worked with. 'There's no need to be outraged to that level, there's no need to harass young workers,' she said. 'In his mind, he thinks he's a misunderstood genius. Pietro needs to not own a business any more.' 'Completely humiliating' This masthead's investigation revealed footage of Barbagallo screaming profanities at his own customers, and pulling the tablecloth causing plates and glasses to smash. The clip has been shared around the world, including by Fox News Primetime hosts, who were shocked by Barbagallo's behaviour. 'Oh my gosh. And that's a business owner whose trying to keep their business? He's a famous chef. I don't know how he made it that far,' said one host. Since last week, other customers have come forward with allegations of recent abusive behaviour by Barbagallo. One woman, who said she could not be identified for professional reasons, said she was celebrating a work milestone in March with her elderly parents and made a booking at Kaprica – a restaurant she liked and had frequented for years. She called in advance to request a quiet table because her mother is hard of hearing, but then they were seated in a busy spot so requested to move. The woman said Barbagallo came to their table and screamed at them. 'I was quite frozen,' she said. 'I tried to de-escalate it… And I kind of explained, 'Oh, look, I've been coming to the restaurant for years and years and years now, I'm not a difficult customer at all, like I'm actually a really big fan of this restaurant, and I don't understand why you're abusing my mum.' 'He just kept talking over me the whole time and berating me, telling me that no one can tell him how he runs his restaurant and it's his place of business.' She said Barbagallo went on a 'weird rant' about them being 'American' when she was not. The altercation lasted for at least 10 minutes, she said, and silenced the busy restaurant. The family left without eating and were so distressed, they went home. The next day, the woman said she caught up with her mother and they both cried. 'Everyone was very shaken following the incident, and I still feel very angry about it ... mostly angry on behalf of my mum because I don't think that she deserved to be humiliated and abused like that.' The woman sent a message to her friend detailing the incident. 'It was actually f---ed,' she said. 'It was really horrible, the whole restaurant was watching. And he just kept going and going.' Michelle Atkinson said Barbagallo had abused her over the phone when she followed up a complaint about suspected food poisoning suffered after a meal at his restaurant. Loading They had two phone calls, one in which she said he was cordial, and the second in which she claimed he was abusive. 'He absolutely hopped into me and said, 'How rude of you to call back. How dare you assume that my food made anyone else sick?' He was so aggressive in that short space of time that I hung up and blocked him because I suspected he would call back and continue to abuse me. I was really shaky.'
The Age
11 hours ago
- The Age
Harassing staff, haranguing customers: fresh complaints against top chef
'I was young at the time but it just felt all wrong,' she said. Jacinta said that Barbagallo routinely partied with staff and openly consumed cocaine. On one occasion, Jacinta alleges he insisted she come back to his house after a nightclub where he offered her cocaine, which she declined, while she waited for friend to pick her up. She claimed Barbagallo then made a sexual advance which she rejected. 'I was like, 'Yeah, this is not happening.' I just pretty much walked out.' Loading Jacinta alleges Barbagallo then treated her differently at work. 'That's when things got really bad,' she said, citing one example where he chastised her over a flower arrangement. 'He completely lost his shit. He threw something at me. I had customers follow me outside the restaurant who were like, 'Are you okay?'' Jacinta said she was paid a settlement after lodging an unfair dismissal claim at the Fair Work Commission. She said she had acquired formal qualifications and had previously wanted to build a hospitality career, but the experience had turned her off. 'It was disappointing for me because I really did enjoy the job,' she said. 'Any aspirations I had in the hospitality industry … that kind of just killed the buzz for that.' The second woman worked at Barbagallo's venue in Lonsdale Street in Melbourne's CBD. She said there were often cocaine bags in his office as well as numerous parking fines because he would park his car illegally on the street in front of the restaurant. 'The police came because he would park his Mercedes right out the front of Lonsdale Street,' she said. 'For months prior to that, he had just been racking up daily parking fines.' She described Barbagallo as a 'workplace predator' due to his outbursts, sexually inappropriate behaviour and other conduct, and alleged he gave his staff cocaine during shifts, sometimes as early as 11am. She alleged that he propositioned her one night when she was intoxicated. 'I'm so used to men behaving like that,' she said. 'In hospitality land back then, you almost forget about it.' She also alleges frequent aggressive behaviour from Barbagallo. On one occasion, she claimed he threw a bottle of red wine at customers who complained about a burnt pizza. 'I thought a bomb went off,' she said. 'The red wine went everywhere, all over the 12 people that were sitting there. Children were there.' She said she had told him his behaviour was unacceptable and claims she was then fired. She describes Barbagallo as the 'most delusional' person she's ever worked with. 'There's no need to be outraged to that level, there's no need to harass young workers,' she said. 'In his mind, he thinks he's a misunderstood genius. Pietro needs to not own a business any more.' 'Completely humiliating' This masthead's investigation revealed footage of Barbagallo screaming profanities at his own customers, and pulling the tablecloth causing plates and glasses to smash. The clip has been shared around the world, including by Fox News Primetime hosts, who were shocked by Barbagallo's behaviour. 'Oh my gosh. And that's a business owner whose trying to keep their business? He's a famous chef. I don't know how he made it that far,' said one host. Since last week, other customers have come forward with allegations of recent abusive behaviour by Barbagallo. One woman, who said she could not be identified for professional reasons, said she was celebrating a work milestone in March with her elderly parents and made a booking at Kaprica – a restaurant she liked and had frequented for years. She called in advance to request a quiet table because her mother is hard of hearing, but then they were seated in a busy spot so requested to move. The woman said Barbagallo came to their table and screamed at them. 'I was quite frozen,' she said. 'I tried to de-escalate it… And I kind of explained, 'Oh, look, I've been coming to the restaurant for years and years and years now, I'm not a difficult customer at all, like I'm actually a really big fan of this restaurant, and I don't understand why you're abusing my mum.' 'He just kept talking over me the whole time and berating me, telling me that no one can tell him how he runs his restaurant and it's his place of business.' She said Barbagallo went on a 'weird rant' about them being 'American' when she was not. The altercation lasted for at least 10 minutes, she said, and silenced the busy restaurant. The family left without eating and were so distressed, they went home. The next day, the woman said she caught up with her mother and they both cried. 'Everyone was very shaken following the incident, and I still feel very angry about it ... mostly angry on behalf of my mum because I don't think that she deserved to be humiliated and abused like that.' The woman sent a message to her friend detailing the incident. 'It was actually f---ed,' she said. 'It was really horrible, the whole restaurant was watching. And he just kept going and going.' Michelle Atkinson said Barbagallo had abused her over the phone when she followed up a complaint about suspected food poisoning suffered after a meal at his restaurant. Loading They had two phone calls, one in which she said he was cordial, and the second in which she claimed he was abusive. 'He absolutely hopped into me and said, 'How rude of you to call back. How dare you assume that my food made anyone else sick?' He was so aggressive in that short space of time that I hung up and blocked him because I suspected he would call back and continue to abuse me. I was really shaky.'
7NEWS
a day ago
- 7NEWS
Wild lake chase ends with teens arrested after stealing police car in Queensland
A wild series of events has ended with two teenage boys in custody after a dramatic lake chase involving a stolen Queensland Police vehicle. The chaos unfolded at Lake Barambah near Moffatdale in Queensland 's South Burnett about 11.30am on Saturday, June 21, when police responded to reports of a break-in at a Meddletons Road property. A number of watercraft had allegedly been stolen from the rural address. Officers used a member of the public's boat to reach the two teens on the lake. The boys, aged 16 and 15, were found on the water and taken into custody. But as officers returned to shore with the teens, one allegedly fled and took off in a marked Queensland Police vehicle. Police attempted to intercept the stolen Toyota Hilux near Murgon, but the vehicle was driven into a creek and became bogged. The boy then fled on foot and jumped into a nearby dam, where he was taken into custody a short time later. Both teenagers are assisting police with ongoing inquiries. The police vehicle sustained damage, and investigations are ongoing.
