Omar Ajaj: Ex Brothers 4 Life member convicted for prohibited weapon and drugs, fined

A former Brothers 4 Life member fronted court today, convicted for possessing a pocket knife and marijuana at his home. He told officers he had the knife as he “lived in fear”.

A former member of Middle East crime gang Brothers For Life, which operated across Sydney’s southwest, told police officers he owned a flick knife without a permit because he “lived in fear” after getting shot in 2013.

Omar Ajaj – who has a distinctive tattoo with the letters MEOC across his neck – fronted Burwood Local Court earlier today for possessing a flick knife without a permit and two grams of marijuana. He pleaded guilty to and was convicted of both charges.

Agreed facts showed 33-year-old Ajaj told the officers who found the knife at his Auburn home that he owned it as he “lived in fear”. Ajaj was shot during a 2013 shooting in Revesby Heights, which claimed the life of Mahmoud Hamzy, the cousin of notorious Supermax inmate Bassam Hamzy.

Omar Ajaj, a former member of the notorious Brothers For Life gang, pictured in 2021.

The emblem for the Brothers 4 Life gang.

In October 2020, police officers inspected Ajaj’s home – where he lives with his father and brother – in a routine prohibited firearms inspection that dated back to a 2013 order. Ajaj co-operated with officers and, when they entered his bedroom, admitted he had a flick knife concealed in a black bag, as well as two grams of marijuana.

Ajaj explained to officers the weapon was given to him by someone else and he didn’t take it out of the house, but due to being shot in 2013 he was in a state of fear, and had the knife as a result.

The MEOC tattoo harks back to the early 2000s.

NSW Police established the Middle Eastern Organised Crime Squad, known as MEOCS, in the early 2000s to concentrate on crime families from the region who were involved in multiple shootings and criminal activity at the time.

Omar Ajaj leaves Burwood Local Court on June 15.

During the reign of the Brothers for Life, crime gang members such as Ajaj tattooed themselves with the letters MEOC in defiance of the squad declaring themselves as criminals.

They also had personalised number plates with MEOCS before they were eventually outlawed by the NSW Government.

Ajaj was accompanied by supporters today at Burwood Local Court for his hearing on two charges: possessing a weapon without a permit and possessing drugs respectively. He pleaded guilty in person to both charges – a previous charge of cocaine possession was withdrawn – and was convicted.

He was fined $400 for possessing the knife and $100 for the marijuana.