Gangland hitman Andrew Veniamin menaced Lawyer X
The late hitman Andrew Veniamin menaced the secret police informer known as Lawyer X over suspicions that she was too close to police at the height of Melbourne’s gangland war, raising speculation about who sent him.
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The late hitman Andrew Veniamin menaced the secret police informer known as Lawyer X over suspicions that she was too close to police.
The Herald Sun has been told that at the height of Melbourne’s gangland war, Veniamin turned up at the barrister’s home unannounced and warned her about her allegiances.
One theory is that there had been concern within the underworld about Lawyer X’s links with police.
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At the time, Veniamin was regarded as one of Melbourne’s most dangerous criminals. Police suspect he claimed at least four scalps during the city’s bloody era of underworld conflict.
It is unclear who sent Veniamin to Lawyer X, but a source said the visit might have been arranged by Italian organised crime figures suspicious of her activities.
Veniamin had been working for Carl Williams at the time, but though Lawyer X helped police for years, Williams did not become certain of that until 2006.
Lawyer X had strong links to players in warring crime factions implicated in a long series of killings.
“She was playing both sides of the (gangland) fence, but Andrew was, too,” a source said.
The confrontation at Lawyer X’s home came years before her luxury silver BMW convertible was firebombed in a South Melbourne street in 2008, around the time suspicions about her activities were growing. She was not hurt, and no one was ever charged over the arson.
Veniamin was shot dead by underworld heavyweight Mick Gatto at Carlton’s La Porcella restaurant in 2004.
A Supreme Court jury acquitted Gatto after he successfully argued he had acted in self-defence when Veniamin pulled a gun on him at the back of the restaurant.
The activities of Lawyer X and the extent of her dealings with police, including informing on her clients, have been recently revealed in the Herald Sun.
The revelations led Premier Daniel Andrews to announce a royal commission, which is due to begin hearings in February.
Veniamin is suspected of having executed at least four people while operating as one of Williams’s stable of contract killers.
His murder victims included Victor Peirce, Paul Kallipolitis, Dino Dibra, and Frank Benvenuto.
Veniamin was also responsible for non-fatal shootings, including drive-by shootings at the properties of enemies, and might also have been connected to other killings.
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Originally published as Gangland hitman Andrew Veniamin menaced Lawyer X
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