Police allege love triangle to blame for Jesse’s death
A young dad gunned down in a brazen attack at Wyong may have been collateral damage in a rapidly escalating feud sparked by a secret tryst, court documents allege.
A young dad gunned down in a brazen attack at Wyong may have been collateral damage in a rapidly escalating feud sparked by a secret tryst, court documents reveal.
Explosive details have emerged about the events leading up to the shooting death of Jesse Thompson on July 3, 2017.
The 19-year-old father-of-two died from a single shotgun blast to the neck while seated in the rear of an SUV following a wild vehicle chase.
His alleged murderer Keith Evans, 25, of Wyee, was committed in Wyong Local Court on Tuesday to stand trial for Mr Thompson’s death.
He was also committed to stand trial for wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm to Jayke Rodgers who police allege was attacked two days earlier in retaliation for having had sex with Mr Evans’ girlfriend.
A police bundle of evidence tendered to court, as part of the committal, alleges Mr Rodgers, then 24, had an intimate relationship with Mr Evans’ girlfriend Danielle Micallef about two years earlier.
In his statement to police, Mr Rodgers said Ms Micallef told him she and Mr Evans had broken up and he kept their trysts quiet because he had a girlfriend at the time.
“We were never in a relationship, it was just sexual,” he told police.
He said the pair had sex four or five times over a three to four month period.
In June 2017 he said he got a number of messages from Ms Micallef’s Facebook account — as the pair only contacted each other via social media — which he believed were actually from Mr Evans using her account.
On June 25, 2017, he got a message telling him “Keith’s going away to Nelsons Bay this weekend. Come over.”
On July 1 they exchanged messages about where to meet up.
Eventually about 1.20am he paid a mate $20 to drive him to a property at Wyee but was growing suspicious.
“I started to think that I was getting set up and that it wasn’t Danielle messaging me,” he said in his police statement.
“I sent Johnno a message to say for him to wait around because I thought I might be getting set up.”
He got another message directing him down a dark driveway where he had to jump a farm gate before he saw Ms Micallef standing in the darkness.
He told police when he put his arm around her waist he heard Mr Evans’ voice shortly before he was bludgeoned with a pillowcase containing a brick or similar heavy object.
Mr Rodgers claims he was hit again as he scaled the gate and then set upon by two more unknown males.
He said he lost consciousness but came to as he was being held in a headlock with two males using the pillowcase weapon to hit his knees.
Mr Rodgers said he was eventually let go and he staggered to a nearby property, collapsed on the veranda and tapped on the window for help.
He was later taken to hospital where he spent two nights recovering with 28 stitches to his head and leg injuries.
On July 3 he was released from hospital and was picked up by friends and taken to a house at Wyong.
That morning police allege Mr Evans turned up at Mr Thompson’s house brandishing a shotgun and looking for Mr Rodgers.
Mr Rodgers meanwhile had a missed Facebook call from Ms Micallef’s profile, to which he messaged back “you’re a dead man walking” intending the message for Mr Evans.
Mr Rodgers rang a female associate of Mr Evans but before he could say anything the woman told him “we’ll meet up at Baker Park. You shouldn’t have f...d Danielle”.
Mr Rodgers, Mr Thompson and four others piled into a Toyota Kluger and drove to Rose St adjacent to Baker Park.
Police allege the Toyota encountered a Mitsubishi Triton and as Mr Rodgers got out, Mr Evans fired a shot at him from the utility.
It is then alleged the Toyota reversed and fled the scene with the Triton in hot pursuit through Wyong until they reached Warner Ave where Mr Evans allegedly fired into the vehicle again striking Mr Thompson seated in the back seat.
Another passenger, Levi Dean, also had some pellets strike his arm.
Mr Evans has pleaded not guilty to the charges and will be arraigned in the Supreme Court on April 5.
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