Albert Biba shoots Andrew Toumayan dead in Ringwood street

A man responsible for guarding a high-stakes Ringwood grow house fatally shot a carpenter who was trying to plunder the crop.

Victoria Police attend the scene where Toumayan was shot dead.

A man fatally shot a carpenter who was trying to burgle a Ringwood grow house after he rushed to the property to stop the intruder.

Albert Biba, 33, fronted the Supreme Court on Friday to plead guilty to a charge of manslaughter.

Biba caused the death of Andrew Toumayan when he shot the 28-year-old in the chest as he was leaving 30 Wantirna Rd, Ringwood about 1am on April 17, 2018

The court heard Toumayan and a friend had gone to the crop house, armed with an iron bar and secateurs, planning to steal marijuana from the sophisticated hydroponic set up.

The pair were caught on CCTV knocking on the front door before they forced their way into the house about 12.45am.

Their entry triggered a motion-activated alarm system that sent messages to the phone of the man renting the property.

The court heard the leasee phoned Biba, who jumped in a Toyota Prato and rushed from Box Hill to the grow house.

Meanwhile, Toumayan and his friend found the large marijuana plants in the house weren’t flowering and decided to leave empty handed.

Toumayan was stepping out the front gate of the property when Biba arrived and shot him in the chest.

Toumayan and his friend then ran from the property until the victim collapsed in a driveway on Barkly St.

The court heard his friend tried to get help and gave him mouth-to-mouth, but Toumayan died at the scene.

Biba fled back to Box Hill.

The Glen Waverley man was not arrested until August 31, 2018 and had spent 994 days in custody by the time of the plea hearing.

The court heard Biba was not alleged to have been involved in cultivating the hefty cannabis crop, which totalled more than 74kg.

It was heard the Albanian man emigrated to Australia in August 2013 on a false green card and would be deported if he was sentenced to more than 12 months’ jail.

Biba’s lawyer said at the moment of the shooting, “there was no time for anything other than a reflexive response”.

“It happened reflexively and it happened in a panic,” the lawyer said.

Justice Christopher Beale asked whether Biba pulling the trigger was accidental.

The lawyer confirmed Biba meant to pull the trigger, but emphasised it happened “in a panic”.

Justice Beale said the offence was not a low or mid example of manslaughter, pointing out Biba had rushed to the scene with a loaded gun.

“There’s a certain amount of deliberateness,” he said.

Justice Beale also disagreed with the lawyer’s submission that Biba was a person of otherwise good character because he had no criminal history, highlighting he had been working as the guard of a crop house.

The lawyer said his client was doing what he had to do to survive, having been disallowed to work on his visa.

A letter written by Biba, as well as references from his friends and family was tendered to the court.

Biba will be sentenced at a later date.