Tragic reason Bill Murrell, 75, shot his son-in-law in Wahroonga
Incredible details of the lead up to a daytime shooting in a leafy Sydney suburb can finally be revealed, as the accused prepares for sentencing.
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William “Bill” Murrell got out of his car wearing a hi-vis vest and face mask, and went to confront his son-in-law Mirko Uskovic, but at the last minute he changed his mind and left.
The next day Murrell went back again, this time with two loaded guns.
It was 10am on the morning of November 12, 2020, and Murrell wanted to send a message to Mr Uskovic, at the height of his bitter separation from his daughter Danielle after 22 years of marriage and four kids.
On the day Mr Uskovic was due to be vacating at the family’s home on leafy Highland Ave in Wahroonga he turned around from packing boxes into his car to find Murrell pointing a gun at his head – before having to duck as more than a dozen shots were fired at him.
Incredible details of the lead up to the shooting can be revealed ahead of Murrell being sentenced in the NSW District Court this month.
The court was told tensions around the break-up had been heightened by the diagnosis of Mrs Uskovic with rapid onset Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and the payout of a $1.8 million life insurance policy, as well as other financial issues.
But as Mr Uskovic prepared to leave the house on November 12, 2020, he turned to find Murrell just three metres away in the front yard with a loaded shortened rifle aimed at him.
The first bullet grazed his neck.
“Somebody help me,” Mr Uskovic yelled.
As he ran for his life Murrell continued to fire bullets in his direction, before chasing him into a carport where his son-in-law ducked for cover between a white Ford Focus and black Kia Carnival.
In something reminiscent of a scene from a Hollywood movie, Mr Uskovic found a long metal pole which he was eventually able to use to strike Murrell when he momentarily lowered his gun.
“The victim (Mr Uskovic) managed to strike the offender in the face with the long pole, knocking him to the ground and causing the offender to drop the rifle,” court documents state.
By this stage neighbours had heard the screams and gunfire, and had called Triple-0.
With the blow from the pole knocking his father-in-law to the ground, Mr Uskovic was forced to “hit and punch” him in the face until police arrived, as the older man kept trying to get up and continue his attack.
When officers arrived they found Murrell covered in blood and with fractures to his eye socket, collar bone and nose – and Mr Uskovic holding the gun.
In a conversation with police Murrell tried to point the blame at his son-in-law.
Murrell: “My daughter has a problem with him”.
Police officer: “You’ve got a problem with him?”
Murrell: “Yep, they separated, and I was asked to come in, he’s moving out at 10, uh 4 o’clock this evening, and he see me … and he attack me, and when I was getting the best of him he started screaming, and I’m nearly 75, he got the best of me.”
Police officer: “So he did this to you, is that what you just said?”
Murrell: “Oh yep”.
In a later interview with detectives Murrell claimed that Mr Uskovic had “virtually kicked her (his wife) out” of their home, before claiming he had been siphoning “$10,000-$20,000 … and $100,000 in total” out of her bank account.
The court papers state Murrell admitted to being “pretty irate” at the perceived treatment of his daughter and went to the house to make sure Mr Uskovic “didn’t take anything from the house, to scare the victim and to tell him to back off”.
But he continued to insist he had not fired the shots in attack, rather in self-defence, claiming Mr Uskovic had chased him with a pole first – and then changing his story again to claim he had thrown a pillow at him, causing his gun to go off.
Murrell has been behind bars since his arrest and has now pleaded guilty to discharging a firearm with the intent to cause grievous bodily harm and possessing an unauthorised firearm, and is facing a maximum 25 years in jail.
He will be sentenced in the Downing Centre District Court on August 12.
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