‘Code of silence’ on Tongan Sam’s shooting
THE injured bodyguard of nightclub boss John Ibrahim is refusing to be interviewed by police after he was shot in the lead-up to a family wedding party involving the sister of Salim Mehajer.
NSW
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THE injured bodyguard of nightclub boss John Ibrahim is refusing to be interviewed by police after he was shot in the lead-up to a family wedding party on Friday.
Semi “Tongan Sam’’ Ngata, 59, is recovering in hospital after taking a bullet which police were initially told hit him in the back and was fired over a fence at the Merrylands home of Mr Ibrahim’s mother.
But the Ibrahim family “code of silence” is frustrating police attempts to find the shooter.
Investigating officers are now not certain if Mr Ngata was actually shot at the Merrylands address as they were informed.
They also discovered he had been shot in the front of his torso, not his back.
A source close to the Ibrahim family said Mr Ngata had not spoken to police and probably would continue his silence.
“Big Sam would never say a word to anyone,” the source said.
Hassan “Sam’’ Sayour, Mr Ibrahim’s nephew, was the subject of the family gathering at the Merrylands home to celebrate his marriage to Aisha Mehajer, the sister of former Auburn deputy mayor Salim Mehajer.
It was initially thought Mr Ngata’s shooting may have been the result of a feud between certain relatives of the happy couple.
Despite Mr Ngata’s silence, police now believe his shooting could be connected to an underworld feud involving extended family members, rather than a violent bid to derail the nuptials.
Police are exploring one theory the feud erupted after drug shipments worth almost $1 billion were stopped by federal police earlier this year, resulting in the arrests of a number of people including Mr Ibrahim’s brothers Michael and Fadi.
There is no suggestion either man was involved in the shooting.
While there is also some talk of bad blood between certain members of the Ibrahim and Mehajer families, there were no signs of animosity last week when two of their high-profile members bumped into each other.
A day before Mr Ngata was shot, Salim Mehajer and Fadi Ibrahim shook hands and made jokes for five minutes at Central Local Court.
Mr Mehajer was in court to try to have his electoral fraud matters delayed, while Fadi Ibrahim failed to vary his bail conditions which have him under virtual house arrest.
Meanwhile, investigators are no closer to discovering the truth about Mr Ngata’s shooting.
Last night, the enforcer remained in a stable condition in hospital, where Mr Ibrahim has been keeping a vigil.
“John is a very resilient fellow. He is very close to Sam and that’s his first concern,” the source said.
Mr Ibrahim’s lawyer Stephen Alexander said Mr Ngata was doing better.
“I spoke to Sam’s wife yesterday, he is getting better and he’s going to be alright.”