Arrest after aspiring air force pilot shot in Wentworthville pizza shop holdup
AN Indian student who had aspirations of joining his nation’s air force will never realise his dreams of being a pilot after he was shot twice in a bloody end to a string of robberies targeting Domino’s pizza outlets across western Sydney.
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AN Indian student who had aspirations of joining his nation’s air force will never realise his dreams of being a pilot after he was shot twice in a bloody end to a string of robberies targeting Domino’s pizza outlets across Western Sydney.
Robbery and Serious Crime Squad detectives charged electrician Salem Rima over the five robberies and shooting of Anand Singh after arresting him on Wednesday at the construction site of a an apartment precinct linked to billionaire developer Harry Triguboff at Pagewood.
Rima did not come out of the cells or apply for bail at Waverley Local Court on Thursday facing 12 charges, including shooting causing grievous bodily harm and armed robbery.
When police raided three Old Guildford address next to each other linked to Rima and his family they allegedly found a large “S” on wall made up of bullets in his bedroom.
They seized a small revolver and items, including clothing, police allege was used in the robberies and ammunition.
A police spokeswoman said investigators were yet to determine the relevance of the bizarre arrangement of .38 calibre bullets, which were glued into an S shape.
“It’s the first initial of his name and that’s all we know,” the spokeswoman said.
Robbery and Serious Crime Squad Detective Acting Superintendent Gary Hutchen said Mr Singh had permanent injuries to his hand.
“He had dreams of pursuing a career in the air force and he was quite a good cricketer,” Supt Hutchen said.
“Those dreams have been curtailed as a result of the incident.”
Mr Singh had come to Australia specially to increase his qualifications so he could join the Indian Air Force after failing to gain admission on two occasions.
Mr Singh said his whole life completely changed the night he was shot.
The damage to his finger means he will never pass the physical test required to join the Indian air force.
“I said to my coworkers, “run”, because I had the gun in my right hand,” Mr Singh said.
“He got angry at me and his first shot was near my ears, then on my chest.”
The bullet Rima allegedly fired is now stuck in Mr Singh’s chest permanently.
“Every time I go through a metal detector the bullet sets it off,” Mr Singh said.
“I was playing cricket, I used to play basketball with my friends, but because of the bullet in my chest I can’t do any running or jumping.”
“I’m not angry, I’m just sad I can’t do anything.”
The five robberies Rima is accused of committing over a seven-week period at the Domino’s restaurants in Fairfield East, Strathfield and North Strathfield and a Korean barbecue in Canley Vale followed a similar pattern with a small revolver being used to threaten staff and the culprit getting away with thousands of dollars in cash.
During the final alleged robbery at Domino’s Wentworthville Rima allegedly shot Singh in the chest and hand during an argument on January 7.
Mr Rima was arrested at the Pagewood Green apartment complex construction site near Westfield Eastgardens in Sydney’s south in front of stunned colleagues soon after they had started work at 9.15am.
The complex is being developed by Meriton, which is owned by Triguboff.
Rima is a casual subcontractor for Suncorp Electrical, who is working on the site.
His next court appearance is scheduled at Central Local Court on June 14.