Latest news with #SamimjanAzari
ABC News
12 hours ago
- ABC News
How teens are recruited as players in Sydney's gangland war
The phone buzzes with a job offer in an encrypted group chat full of young men. But it's not about repainting a house or mowing lawns, the person on the other end is looking for a hit-man. Police say they are now grappling with guns for hire in Sydney being recruited online getting younger and younger. Often, the teens do not know who is making the offer on behalf of the organised crime group paying them to shoot, kidnap and firebomb the properties of underworld rivals. Other jobs include stealing a potential getaway car and staging it in a nearby location for the gunmen to make their escape from the scene. In the most recent iteration of the city's gangland war, those recruited by warring crime gangs "for literally nothing" are juveniles lured by meagre sums of money, one police source noted. In the most recent attempt to take out an underworld figure on Monday in Auburn, police suspect the gunmen hired to shoot Samimjan Azari were recruited in a similar method. But as Taskforce Falcon Commander Jason Box said after a 16-year-old was charged with torching a barbershop in Merrylands, the consequences for those involved can go beyond the court system. "You're associating with serious organised crime networks and committing offences against them," Superintendent Box said. "The repercussions for their actions in the courts is one consideration, but there's also repercussions from the persons they're targeting from the organised crime networks. Superintendent Box said the owner of the torched barbershop has links to the Alameddine crime family, whose internal feud, police believe, is behind an explosion in underworld violence. The Alameddines are a Western Sydney family who police allege are one of the biggest crime gangs currently involved in the city's lucrative drug trade. Taskforce Falcon, headed up by Superintendent Box, was established last month after the internal feud saw Dawood Zakaria killed while sitting at traffic lights in Granville. Mr Zakaria was a member of the splintering Alameddine clan, though the hitmen's target was believed to be Samimjan Azari, who survived the attack in the back seat. Mr Azari this week survived the brazen fourth attempt to kill him this year when masked gunmen stormed the Auburn kebab shop he was in about 1pm on Monday. Police believe those responsible for picking up the offers to steal getaway cars and commit arson attacks are being recruited on encrypted group chats like Signal in a new marketplace for criminals for hire. "We believe [the recruitment] is from social media, encrypted devices and word of mouth," Superintendent Box said after they charged the teenager over the Merrylands firebombing. One day after forming on May 27, Taskforce Falcon charged another 16-year-old boy over allegedly staging a stolen "kill car" with jerry can of fuel, a balaclava and two guns inside. The items are consistent with getaway cars often found burnt-out in the aftermath of the dozens of underworld killings Sydney has experienced since 2020. A few days later a 17-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy were charged with stealing a car in Lidcombe. Jerry cans of fuel were found inside. Later that same day they also arrested another 15-year-old boy who they allege fled the scene after the stolen car, a Toyota HiLux, was stopped during a random patrol. In the botched attempt to shoot alleged Alameddine crime boss Ali Elmoubayed at his Merrylands home on June 12 police are investigating what role two teens may have had. The pair, both 17, were arrested after allegedly driving a stolen Ford Territory erratically in Greystanes in the aftermath of the shooting. Inside police said they located balaclavas, cans of fuel, bleach and knives. One of the teenagers — believed to have been a passenger in the alleged stolen vehicle — pleaded not guilty when he appeared in court and was granted conditional bail. His lawyer told the court it was the first court matter on his record and his first interaction with police. The lawyer expressed "extreme concerns" about the prosecution case against him, including that there was no assertion he was driving the car, or that the knife was his. All the teenagers who have been charged by Taskforce Falcon remain before the Childrens Court. Three adults have been charged over the shooting on Mr Elmoubayed's home, which forced him to leave over fears for his life. Former NSW Police officer Peter Moroney spent 18 years on the force, for most of those years he was chasing the worst of the worst. Mr Moroney could see similarities in how the teens are being lured into the underworld with his days tracking terrorists and how they recruited young extremists. "In terms of how [the children] are getting involved a lot of the time in disadvantaged areas when they're coming from broken homes they're looking for a sense of belonging," he said. "And these gangs offer that. But if a couple of kids get caught in the crossfire they don't give a rat's arse. "If they get a cleanskin to do it with no criminal record it's less likely to tie back to them. "But you have seen how their work is sloppy, back in the day they would have paid a lot of money, flown a hitman in and [the target] would be dead by now."
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Grim update on underworld figure's bodyguard following broad daylight shooting in busy Sydney kebab shop
One of the victims of a brazen shooting in a kebab shop may 'never walk again'. Two masked and hooded gunmen, dressed head to toe in black, sprinted into M Brothers in Auburn, in Sydney 's west, just after 1pm on Monday. Samimjan Azari, 26, was hit in the arm and shoulder, 25-year-old Kali Taiseni was shot in the face and an innocent female shop employee, Yurdagul Aydogu, suffered two gunshot wounds to the torso. Mr Taiseni, an aspiring footballer, was travelling with Azari when the shooting unfolded. While he was hit in the face with a bullet, it has been revealed that shrapnel travelled through to his head to spine. His loved ones were told he may never walk again, reported The Daily Telegraph. Ms Aydogu, 47, remains in a medically induced coma but is expected to make a full recovery. She underwent two round of surgery to remove the bullets from her body. Azari also remains hospitalised for his arm and shoulder injuries. The would-be assassins on Monday unleashed a volley of eight handgun shots as their victims tried to flee out the back, while another man attempted to fend them off with a chair. Police believe Azari was the target of the attack due to his underworld links. Azari has survived three prior attempts on his life - including being shot while he was riding in the back of a ute at Brighton Le Sands - and he was allegedly behind a heist at Condell Park in January. In that incident, he allegedly sent two men to steal illegal tobacco valued at roughly $4.5million from a black market syndicate, but it turned into a violent kidnapping. Three men were allegedly threatened with weapons, tied up, bashed and one of the men had his toe 'partially severed' in the attack which lasted up to half an hour. Officers are believed to have seized the cigarettes, Nine News reported. Police believe this incident is why Azari is wanted dead and Detective Superintendent Jason Box believed he also escaped a planned attack last Friday. 'On this occasion, witnesses sighted a white ute with several occupants with their faces covered, and one occupant was believed to be holding a firearm,' he said. Azari and his associates reportedly provided 'limited information'. CCTV showed the aftermath of the kebab shop shooting, with NSW Ambulance paramedics treating the injured at the scene. Diner owner Mohammed Rahimi revealed on Tuesday how he fought to save the life of staff cook Gul Yildiz, 47, as she lay bleeding from her wounds. 'There was a lot of blood,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was basically putting pressure [on them].' He said he did not recognise the men who were shot in the hit, saying he sees a lot of customers each day. But he said the gunmen knew their targets and told staff to get on the ground. 'After second gunshot, the power cut off, so the shop was dark,' he added. 'One of the staff, as soon as she hear a gunshot, she fell down. She was there behind the counter with another staff, and basically [the gunman] told [us] to get down. The innocent victim caught in the crossfire is known in the community as a 'very good lady', locals told Daily Mail Australia. She is currently in a coma at Westmead Hospital with her daughter by her side and is believed to be in a stable condition. 'It is beyond comprehension that three people were shot in a crowded Sydney street in broad daylight, and the resources of the NSW police have already been deployed,' Acting NSW Police Commissioner Peter Thurtell said. Police recently warned that Azari was at the 'epicentre' of gangland tensions in the city. During a press conference on Monday, police minister Yasmin Catley said the gunmen will be held accountable as she shared her anger at an innocent woman getting shot. 'All she did was go to work and she has been caught up in this shocking event,' she said. 'It's one thing for criminals to be shooting each other but when innocent people get caught up in this, it is absolutely abhorrent and we will not tolerate it. 'It's completely unacceptable that this sort of behaviour should happen in Sydney.' 'We will do everything we can to bring these gunmen to justice. It's as simple as that. We will make sure that we go and go until we bring these people to justice.' Witnesses said two men with their faces covered entered the South Parade kebab shop and fired eight bullets. At the time of the shooting, the area was bustling with people on their lunch break and heading to the nearby Auburn train station.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Innocent woman caught up in Auburn gangland shooting fighting for life in hospital
The innocent woman fighting for her life after being caught in a gangland shooting remains fighting for life in in hospital. Yurdagul Aydogu, 50, was shot twice in the stomach when two masked gunmen stormed M Brothers Kebab shop in Auburn, in Sydney 's west, just after 1pm on Monday. The would-be assassins unleashed a volley of eight handgun shots. Ms Aydogu, a staff member at the restaurant, was hit in the crossfire. Police have described her as an innocent victim simply doing her job. The intended target, 26-year-old Samimjan Azari, was shot in the arm and shoulder. A third man, who has not been identified, was shot in the face. Restaurant owner Mohammed Rahimi said he fought to save Ms Aydogu's life as she lay bleeding on the floor. 'There was a lot of blood,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was basically putting pressure [on them].' He said he did not recognise the men who were shot in the hit, saying he sees a lot of customers each day. But he said the gunmen knew their targets and told staff to get on the ground. 'After second gunshot, the power cut off, so there shop was dark,' he added. 'One of the staff, as soon as she hear a gunshot, she fell down. She was there behind the counter with another staff, and basically [the gunman] told [us] to get down. The innocent victim caught in the crossfire is known in the community as a 'very good lady', locals told Daily Mail Australia. She is currently in a coma at Westmead Hospital with her daughter by her side.
News.com.au
4 days ago
- News.com.au
‘Abhorrent': Kebab shop worker latest innocent victim caught in gangland crossfire
A kebab shop employee fighting for her life in hospital after being hit twice in the stomach in Sydney's latest brazen gangland shooting has been identified as Yurdagul Aydogu. The 50-year-old employee at M Brothers Takeaway, known as Gul, was caught in the crossfire with police describing her as an innocent victim simply doing her job. Ms Aydogu is in a critical condition, in an induced coma at Westmead Hospital. Police say the shooting, in front of a busy lunchtime crowd in Auburn, was a targeted underworld hit. Alleged gangland figure Samimjan Azari, 26, was the intended target, with detectives revealing it was the fourth time an attempt had been made on his life. Video footage shows Azari grabbing a chair to shield himself as two masked men run at him, while firing bullets at him and a man said to be his bodyguard. Ms Aydogu was hit in the midsection by two stray bullets. She is the 14th innocent person caught in the crossfire of the escalating gang wars said to have been sparked by a feud between the Alameddine crime clan and their former enforcers, the KVT. State Police Minister Yasmin Catley said this week it was 'abhorrent' that civilians were being caught in the crossfire of apparent underworld violence. 'A woman has been caught up in this event, an innocent victim doing her job, all she did is go to work and she has been caught up in this shocking event,' she said. 'It's one thing for criminals to be shooting each other, but when innocent people get caught up in this, it is absolutely abhorrent and we will not tolerate it.' Since the gang war began in October 2020, seven innocent people have been shot dead and at least another seven have been injured. Plumber John Versace was killed in a case of mistaken identity in May this year. A masked gunman dived from a Corolla and fired 10 shots at the young plumber in Condell Park as he screamed at him to stop. Described by relatives as 'a beautiful boy, an innocent boy,' Mr Versace had no known criminal associations. Thi Kim Tran, a 45-year-old mother originally from Vietnam, was tragically killed in Sydney on April 17 in what authorities described as a targeted act of gang-related violence. She was abducted from her home in Bankstown by five masked men and later found dead in a burnt-out SUV in Beverly Hills. Police believe the attack was linked to her partner's alleged involvement with an organised crime syndicate. During the home invasion, Ms Tran's eight-year-old son was severely beaten with a baseball bat and placed in an induced coma, while her 15-year-old son witnessed the traumatic event. Authorities have emphasised that Ms Tran and her children had no involvement in criminal activities. A month earlier, grandmother Kim Duncan was killed when she was hit by a slew of bullets which were fired into her Ambarvale home. Ms Duncan was not the intended target, but tragically died when she was struck by a piece of shrapnel. In 2023, Ahmad Al Azzam, 25, was killed and a young couple seriously injured in a bungled gangland shooting at an industrial estate in Greenacre. An innocent couple were also caught up in the shooting after the gunman's shots pierced their car parked 50 metres down the street. Kaashif Richards, 22, was shot in the neck and Achiraya Jantharat, 19, was shot in the back. Police sources said while Richards and Jantharat were together, they did not know Al-Azzam – who also did not have gang links. In the same year Taha Sabbagh, a 40-year-old father and well-known chauffeur in Sydney's Middle Eastern community, was killed in a targeted shooting outside the Elite Fight Force gym in Sefton. A getaway driver has been jailed, with the case playing out in court as one of mistaken identity. An innocent Sydney hairdresser was shot dead in 2022. Amy Al-Hazouri, 39, was shot dead alongside 48-year-old Lametta Fadlallah when their car was sprayed with bullets in Panania in what police labelled a targeted 'assassination'. Also in 2022, Toufik Hamze, 64, was executed alongside his son Salim, 18, as they cleaned a car outside their Guildford home. While Salim was believed to have been caught up in the underworld, Mr Toufik was just collateral, executed at close range. Also in 2022, a nine-year-old girl was shot in Connells Point as she walked from the car to the front of her home. It was an attack that sickened police, and left her with life long injuries. In 2021, Mustapha Naaman, 29, was killed in a volley of gunfire as he left a boxing fight night. Police again believe it was a case of mistaken identity. In the same year Rama Osman was shot in the head with a stray bullet while he was sitting in his car a few hundred metres up the road when low-level Alameddine crime clan member Shady Kanj was assassinated. Mr Osman had no links to any gang – and police said he was an innocent bystander. NSW Police Acting Commissioner Peter Thurtell described the latest shooting as 'beyond comprehension' and promised every available resource would be thrown at catching those responsible.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Daily Mail
Horrifying moment masked gunmen storm a kebab shop and open fire leaving an innocent woman in a coma - as cops reveal why underworld figure was likely targeted
An underworld figure shot in broad daylight inside a Sydney kebab shop had avoided four previous attempts on his life and had allegedly ripped off other a rival gang in a tobacco heist. Two masked and hooded gunmen, dressed head to toe in black, sprinted into the Turkish diner in Auburn in Sydney 's west just after 1pm on Monday. Samimjan Azari, 26, was hit in the arm and shoulder, an unidentified male was shot in the face and an innocent female shop employee suffered two gunshot wounds to the torso. The would-be assassins unleashed a volley of eight handgun shots as their victims tried to flee out the back, while another man attempted to fend them off with a chair. It was revealed on Tuesday evening that police are considering whether Azari was the target of the attack, Nine News has reported. Azari has survived four attempt on his life and he was allegedly behind a heist at Condell Park in January. He allegedly sent two men to steal illegal tobacco valued at roughly $4.5million but it became a violent kidnapping. Three men were allegedly threatened with weapons, tied up, bashed and one of the men had his toe 'partially severed' in the attack which lasted up to half an hour. Officers are believed to have seized the cigarettes. Police are now considering whether this incident is why Azari is wanted dead. The dramatic moment a gangland hit squad burst into a kebab shop and opened fire was captured in disturbing new CCTV footage, as shop staff break their silence about the terrifying attack. The CCTV video captured the moment the victims scrambled to hide as the gunmen stormed into the M Brothers kebab shop and bore down on them. The video cut out when a ricochet bullet fragment took out the power supply to the cafe, before it was reconnected as emergency service workers tended to the victims. Footage also showed the aftermath, with NSW Ambulance paramedics treating the injured at the scene. The victims remained in Westmead Hospital on Monday night. Diner owner Mohammed Rahimi revealed on Tuesday how he fought to save the life of staff cook Gul Yildiz, 47, as she lay bleeding from her wounds. 'There was a lot of blood,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was basically putting pressure [on them].' He said he did not recognise the men who were shot in the hit, saying he sees a lot of customers each day. But he said the gunmen knew their targets and told staff to get on the ground. 'After second gunshot, the power cut off, so there shop was dark,' he added. 'One of the staff, as soon as she hear a gunshot, she fell down. She was there behind the counter with another staff, and basically [the gunman] told [us] to get down. The innocent victim caught in the crossfire is known in the community as a 'very good lady', locals told Daily Mail Australia. She is currently in a coma at Westmead Hospital with her daughter by her side. The gunmen tried to enter an office at the back of the shop as they fled before escaping in a black BMW with cloned registration plates, Acting NSW Police Commissioner Peter Thurtell said. 'It is beyond comprehension that three people were shot in a crowded Sydney street in broad daylight, and the resources of the NSW police have already been deployed,' Commander Thurtell said. Police recently warned that Azari was at the 'epicentre' of gangland tensions in the city. Officers are investigating whether the two gunmen were hired on the Airtasker online platform, according to The Daily Telegraph. This is the same method that was used in a separate attempted murder of a figure from the Alameddine criminal clan within the past month. During a press conference on Monday, police minister Yasmin Catley said the gunmen will be held accountable as she shared her anger at an innocent woman getting caught up in the gangland shooting. 'All she did was go to work and she has been caught up in this shocking event,' she said. 'It's one thing for criminals to be shooting each other but when innocent people get caught up in this, it is absolutely abhorrent and we will not tolerate it.' 'It's completely unacceptable that this sort of behaviour should happen in Sydney. 'We will do everything we can to bring these gunmen to justice. It's as simple as that. We will make sure that we go and go until we bring these people to justice.' Witnesses said two men with their faces covered entered the South Parade kebab shop and fired eight bullets. At the time of the shooting, the area was bustling with people on their lunch break and heading to the nearby Auburn train station. The shooting comes less than three weeks after Police Minister Catley announced the formation of Taskforce Falcon — a new strike force targeting a recent spate of underworld shootings. Police sources are reported to have said a split between the Alameddines and the KVT gang members, who were once the former's enforcers, is the reason behind the latest run of violence in the city. Last month, police warned a court there would be 'bloodshed on the sheets' if Azari was granted bail after he was charged with possessing an unauthorised gun allegedly found inside a ute. He had been the target of a previous daylight shooting incident on May 25 at Granville, which killed Dawood Zakaria, when a gunman opened fire at their vehicle at a set of traffic lights. Azari's first attempt on his life took place at Brighton-Le-Sands back in February, but he escaped without serious injury.
