Police hunt the masked gunman who shot dead Walid “Wally” Ahmad
POLICE may have found another getaway car used by gunmen fleeing a Bankstown shooting, after a mysterious car crash in Victoria.
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POLICE are investigating whether an abandoned vehicle found in Victoria could have been used as a getaway vehicle for gunmen responsible for the violent murder of Walid “Wally” Ahmad in Sydney on Friday.
Those responsible for the shooting are still at large and police are now investigating whether they could have fled south.
A police spokeswoman confirmed to news.com.au that officers were exploring whether a car crash on the Hume Highway at Benalla was linked to the shooting.
“We have been contacted by Victoria Police about the crash,” she said.
But she said there had been no confirmation that the vehicle involved in the crash was linked to the Bankstown shooting.
“Any suggestion otherwise would be premature,” she said.
“The identification of the occupants remain unknown and therefore we can’t establish any link between the occupants of the vehicle and the Bankstown incident.”
The occupants of the vehicle reportedly fled the scene. The silver Toyota Hilux crashed into the tree on the highway about 2.50am.
It was the second car possibly linked to the shooting, with police also finding a burnt-out Mercedes believed to have been used as a getaway car in Sydney.
POLICE TRY TO STOP ‘ALL OUT WAR’
Meanwhile, officers desperate to prevent any more deaths will be speaking to gang associates throughout Sydney’s southwest amid fears the murder of Ahmad would trigger a violent backlash.
Officers will be going to the homes of known gang members this weekend to try and find the killer of Ahmad, a well-known figure in Sydney organised crime circles, as well as to try and calm the situation.
Ahmad, 40, was killed Friday morning when he and two friends were surprised by a masked gunman who opened fire at them in carpark at the Bankstown Central Shopping Centre shortly before midday.
A 60-year-old man and a 31-year-old woman suffered gunshot wounds to their legs during the brazen attack.
No arrests had been made on Saturday morning. A police spokeswoman told news.com.au there was a lot of activity happening but couldn’t provide details.
Police believe the killing was possibly related to the shooting of 32-year-old Safwan Charbaji outside Ahmad’s business on April 9. In that incident, shots were fired through the front windscreen and struck him in the chest.
A police source told Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph close attention would be paid to two “distinct” groups.
“There are two distinct crime groups now involved in a feud and they are extremely violent.”
Officers will be knocking on known gang members doors this weekend to try and find Ahmad’s killer.
Bankstown Commander Superintendent David Eardley yesterday appealed directly to gang associates and urged them not to take the law into their own hands.
“Leave it to us to investigate and leave it to us to identify the people involved. We will put them before the courts, they will be dealt with under our law,” he told reporters yesterday.
And then speaking directly about revenge attacks he added: “There is no need to revert to any type of action that will jeopardise their family and the public.”
However, he said the public had no reason to be afraid as the attack on Ahmad was clearly targeted and carefully planned.
“People need to understand and feel safe to go about the streets and their daily lives.”
A white Mercedes was used as getaway vehicle before being burnt out in Greenacre, while a A VW was then used before it was dumped. A third vehicle, believed to be the final getaway car, also used.
Yesterday’s incident was the 10th public shooting in the past month. It shocked witnesses who were going about their day when the gunshots rang out.
“There was a guy lying in a pool of blood. They were trying to revive him, but he [had] passed away already.
“I was in the war zone in Lebanon, but it wasn’t as scary as what I just saw,” a woman told the Nine Network.
Last night a source with knowledge of the two rival gangs told news.com.au a drug debt was at the centre of the long running dispute.
SHOOTING DRAMA
As yesterday’s shooting was taking place at Bankstown shopping centre a man rushed into a shop inside screaming, “There’s not enough f***ing time”.
A woman working in a cosmetics store inside the centre told news.com.au that a man and a woman rushed into the shop moments before the shooting.
“Where’s store security? Where’s store security? Can you call them?” the distressed woman said.
She banged her hand on the counter, saying “call them, call them!”
But the man said: “There’s not enough f***ing time.”
The pair then ran towards an escalator, which leads to the third-level gym, cafe and carpark, where the shooting occurred.
It is not known who the people were or if they were hurt in the shooting.
One witness said she was parking her car just after the shooting happened.
“It was in his stomach, around his chest,” she said.
“I saw him after he was shot. I was just getting out of my car. It was right outside the front door.”
Some witnesses thought the shots were loud bangs coming from the gym nearby. They then realised what was happening when they heard the screams.
Fatema Islam, who works at the nearby Bankstown Hospital, said she had just parked her car when she heard two gunshots and a woman screaming.
Ms Islam said she ran inside after hearing a woman screaming “gunshot, gunshot”.
Originally published as Police hunt the masked gunman who shot dead Walid “Wally” Ahmad
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