Pasquale Lanciana’s ‘role’ over 1994 road-gang Armaguard robbery revealed
THE alleged role of the only man to be charged over the infamous 1994 road-gang robbery has been revealed for the first time.
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THE alleged role of the only man to be charged over the infamous 1994 road-gang robbery has been revealed for the first time.
Police allege Pasquale “Percy No Mercy” Lanciana held the stop sign that brought an Armaguard truck to a halt moments before it was robbed of $2.3 million.
It is the first time details of Mr Lanciana’s alleged role in the 23-year-old crime have been made public.
Lawyers for Mr Lanciana were last week granted permission to cross-examine six witnesses at a committal hearing later this year.
Among them will be two secret witnesses whose identities cannot be revealed but whose evidence is understood to be central to the police case against Mr Lanciana.
Three people who won’t take the stand are the guards from the Armaguard truck hijacked during the robbery.
Two have since died and one has been assessed as unfit to testify, the court heard.
Mr Lanciana, who appeared in court via videolink from prison, has been in custody since being arrested in November for the robbery.
He is charged with armed robbery, robbery, kidnapping, false imprisonment, car theft, handling stolen goods and money laundering.
Detectives hope DNA samples collected from the scene of will match Mr Lanciana’s DNA, which he has been ordered to provide to authorities.
Testing is not expected to be completed for at least three months.
Police have fought off two attempts by Mr Lanciana for bail, arguing he could interfere with prosecution witnesses and is a risk to public safety.
They also argued the prominent kickboxer was a violent man who may have been linked to the 1984 murder of his wife, Maryanna.
No one has been charged over the murder, despite a $1 million reward being on offer for information, but police publicly implicated Mr Lanciana in the killing following his arrest over the road-gang robbery.