Multiple crime scenes in Panania and Revesby after two women fatally shot

Both victims of a double killing in Sydney’s southwest have been identified as police condemn the “unprecedented” and “appalling” underworld attack, and reveal the older woman may have been targeted. WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

A mother and her female friend shot dead in a public street has signalled to police that all gloves are off in Sydney’s terrifying underworld where women were previously off limits.

Lametta Fadlallah, 48, and Amy Hazouri, 39, — the first two women to die in Sydney from a gangland hit — were killed on Saturday night when a gunman opened fire on the car they were passengers in.

The women, along with a 20-year-old man and a 16-year-old girl, were sitting in a silver Toyota 4WD outside Ms Fadlallah’s house in Panania, when a vehicle pulled up beside them and “pumped about eight shots into it”.

Local woman Rebecca, who was preparing her young kids for bed, said there was no mistaking the sound that rang out in the quiet street just before 9pm.

“My kids heard it, we all did … like bang bang bang, yeah, we knew straight away it was a gun,” she said.

Revesby shooting victim Lametta Fadlallah. Picture: Facebook

The second shooting victim, Amy Hazouri. Picture: Instagram

The 4WD which had been shot up, with the dying women inside, then sped away from Hendy Ave for about a kilometre to Revesby where it pulled over.

Retired firefighter Peter Aitkin was sitting on his veranda when the 4WD pulled up directly outside his Weston St house, followed by two more vehicles behind it.

Forensics police officers examine the scene of a burnt out car in Revesby on Sunday. Picture: Monique Harmer

“There was a lot of yelling but I had no idea what it was all about … I thought at first the woman in the back might have had a heart attack and that’s why the car has pulled up,” he said. Across the street, neighbour Susan saw the same commotion and called Triple-0 thinking it was a domestic violence incident.

“The man was yelling at the woman to get back in the car … she was screaming, I couldn’t really understand what she was saying but she was hysterical, so I called the police,” Susan said.

But NSW Police homicide squad boss Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said what neighbours witnessed was an “assassination” of two women on a public street and the car had fled there to escape taking any more bullets.

A steely Det Supt Doherty said the double shooting murder of two women who are “mothers, daughters, loved ones” was an appalling crime which had the hallmarks of a methodical and planned murder.

He said the underworld “rule book” had gone out the window.

“There used to be an unwritten law that you don’t touch family and you don’t touch women,” Det Supt Doherty said.

“That’s been thrown out of the window, they don’t care anymore. They don’t discriminate if you’re male or female.”

Mr Aitkin said he watched as police valiantly performed CPR on the two women on the footpath, before he handed a flower to police to place on the body of Ms Fadlallah who died at the scene.

Paramedics continued to work on Ms Hazouri as they raced her to Liverpool Hospital but she died soon after arriving.

The car alight on Paten St, Revesby on Saturday night.

A burnt-out car was found nearby, on the corner of Presland Ave and Paten St. Police are investigating if it is linked to the shootings. Picture: Damian Shaw

Police said the women and their younger friends were “heading out for the night” when they were set upon, and it was likely Ms Fadlallah was the target while the others were caught in the crossfire.

“We do believe this is targeted … one theory is definitely that the older woman was the target because of her past relationships with other known identities,” Det Supt Doherty said.

Ms Fadlallah is known to have underworld connections going back years, having once been married to Shadi Derbas, a member of the once-notorious Telopea Street gang.

A late model Peugeot SUV parked in the driveway of Ms Fadlallah’s rental townhouse was towed from the scene on Sunday morning while a search was carried out inside the home, where no one was home.

Public order and riot squad police combed the street and found a number of bullet casings, which were taken away for testing, while forensic specialists dusted nearby cars for clues.

Three cars were found burnt out in separate locations in Moorebank, Revesby and Yagoona which police believe are linked to the double killing.

Originally published as Multiple crime scenes in Panania and Revesby after two women fatally shot