Brothers 4 Life: Sydney’s notorious Qaumi brothers sentenced to minimum 100 years over string of violent shootings
FORMER Brothers 4 Life members Farhad, Mumtaz and Jamil Qaumi have collectively been sentenced to a minimum 100 years’ jail for gangland shootings and the murder of debt collector Joe Antoun.
NSW
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THE partner of Joe Antoun, who witnessed his cold-blooded execution when he answered the door of his Strathfield home in 2013, was finally able to smile today.
Outside court today, after two Qaumi brothers involved in Mr Antoun’s murder were sentenced along with their brother to collectively more than 100 years of jail, Teagan Mullens said she was “really happy with the result”.
She also thanked police for their efforts in investigating the case.
“It was a good feeling, I mean we’ve lost Joe forever,” she said.
Ms Mullens was at home with her and Antoun’s young twin girls when the debt collector was murdered by a hitman.
Security footage captured a hooded man knocking on the family’s home and firing several shots at Antoun as he stood in his doorway.
Earlier today inside court, former Brothers For Life leader Farhad Qaumi was sentenced to a minimum of 43 years’ jail for a series of “outlandish and lawless” gangland shootings and the murder of Mr Antoun.
His brother Mumtaz Qaumi was sentenced to a maximum 50 and minimum 36 years’ jail for the murder and a number of other violent shootings.
After learning he would be in his 60s when finally released, Mumtaz waved at his supporters in court and gave a thumbs up.
Shortly after Farhad learned he had been sentenced to a maximum of 60 years’ jail, he waved to family and was escorted out of the court with corrective services officers.
In handing down his sentence for Farhad and Mumtaz, Justice Peter Hamill said the pair had “indulged in a war with a criminal gang” in which “completely innocent victims were caught in the crossfire”.
“Two men are dead and it is pure good fortune that more people were not killed,” he said.
In February the brothers were found guilty of organising a hitman to shoot Mr Antoun dead “in cold blood” after he opened the front door of his Strathfield home on December 16, 2013.
A seven-month judge-alone trial in the NSW Supreme Court last year heard the Qaumis had agreed to carry out the contract killing at the request of Antoun’s business partner Elias “Les” Elias who later fled to the Philippines.
The murder was carried out by gunman “Witness L”, who gave evidence as the Crown’s star witness and told the court that Farhad, as the leader of the BFL’s Blacktown chapter, put “fears in the members’ hearts”.
Justice Hamill made note of how Mr Antoun’s partner Teagan Mullens gave chilling evidence about witnessing how the father-of-two was “executed in cold blood”.
She spoke of how her young daughters waved at the ambulance which took their father away after he was shot.
He also highlighted how Mr Antoun was involved in several disputes with notorious Sydney underworld figures including Jim Byrnes slain Mafia figure Pasquale Barbaro, who Justice Hamill suspected had a motive to kill him.
“The evidence does not allow a clear finding as to whether Pasquale Barbaro or others may have stood behind Elias in this enterprise but I suspect that he did,” Justice Hamill said when he delivered his verdict earlier this year.
Farhad was sentenced for a total 15 offences, Mumtaz for 17 and Jamil Qaumi, who was not involved in the murder, for 18.
During a previous trial, Mumtaz was captured on CCTV launching himself on fellow gang member Mohammed Kalal.
Corrective Services officers were then seen dragged him and his brother Farhad out of the courtroom.
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