Noah Touma granted bail on attempted murder charge after judge casts doubt on UFC gym shooting case
Police allege Noah Touma dressed as a delivery driver and fired a gun at a UFC fighter outside a Sydney gym. But a judge has questioned if a jury could rightly be satisfied of that beyond reasonable doubt.
Police & Courts
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A man accused of dressing as a delivery driver and attempting to shoot a UFC fighter outside a busy Sydney gym has been released on bail after a judge cast doubt over the chances of him being found guilty.
Police allege Noah Touma, a once-promising rugby league player, fired a single shot towards mixed martial artist Suman Mokhtarian outside the Australian Top Team gym at Wentworthville in February last year.
According to documents tendered to the NSW Supreme Court, police will allege Touma was acting in company with a second man at the time, with the pair accused of making preparations ahead of the incident including purchasing a second-hand scooter — registered in Touma’s name — that was later used in the shooting.
However, prosecutors this week conceded detectives had been unable to determine any clear motive for the shooting, nor had they established any links between Touma and Mr Mokhtarian, or the gym.
Touma’s lawyers, barrister Ertunc Ozen and solicitor Talal Krayem, argued the case against their client was a weak one, devoid of crucial evidence needed to secure a conviction.
Justice Ian Harrison agreed, saying the crown case would proceed on the basis Touma “attempted to shoot a perfect stranger for no reason that can be discerned”.
“Moreover, the Crown case is that Mr Touma did so using his own recently purchased motor scooter which was not altered or defaced in a way to disguise the identity of its owner,” he said.
“I am not prepared to conclude that the Crown case is strong.
“Whatever suspicions may attend these events, it would, in my view, be difficult for a properly-instructed jury to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the person firing the shots on this day was Mr Touma.”
Justice Harrison granted Touma bail on strict conditions including that he attend a live-in drug rehabilitation centre, surrender his passport and not have more than one mobile phone in his possession.
Meanwhile, the court was shown video footage of the shooting captured on nearby CCTV cameras at Wentworthville Railway Station.
The footage shows the would-be delivery driver riding the scooter past the entry to the gym at 7.45pm on February 20, before stopping about 20 metres up the road next to a telegraph pole.
The rider – wearing the high-vis shirt and orange helmet – can be seen in the distance getting off the bike and loitering for a few moments, seemingly looking at or reaching into what appears to be an insulated food pack perched on the back of the bike.
The footage then shows the rider calmly walk down the footpath towards the gym before reaching into their pants and pulling out a gun.
Police allege a single shot was fired towards Mokhtarian but it missed and he fled inside the packed gym, followed by the shooter, who fired another three rounds inside the premises before fleeing back to the scooter.
The shots cause others standing outside the gym to scatter.
The scooter was later found burned out on nearby Fulton Avenue.
Touma was arrested in May and charged with eight offences including attempted murder and discharging a firearm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
The court heard he had spent nine months in custody on remand and any trial would likely not proceed until 2026.
The case will return to court for further mention later this month.
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