Man charged over fatal Mordialloc double shooting

An elderly man has been charged with murder after allegedly shooting dead two neighbours at his Mordialloc block of flats.

A large police presence remained at the McDonald St flats on Friday. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

A man has been charged following a fatal shooting in Mordialloc on Thursday evening.

Rodney Lee, 73, was remanded into custody for a committal mention on May 6 at a brief filing hearing at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Friday evening.

Magistrate Michelle Mykytowycz ruled the white-haired Lee, who appeared via video link, be seen by a doctor after it was disclosed he suffers from lymphoedema, which is a medical condition associated with damaged lymph nodes.

Lee was charged following a fatal shooting in Mordialloc on Thursday evening.

He was charged with two counts of murder, recklessly endangering life and assaulting an emergency service worker.

Emergency Services were called to an address in McDonald St about 9.10pm after reports of gunshots.

On arrival police found two people with critical injuries. They were treated at the scene but unfortunately died.

Homicide squad boss Detective Inspector Dean Thomas said police searched the area and confronted a 73-year-old, who pointed a gun at them.

One officer fired a shot but it did not hit the man, who retreated inside a property before later surrendering.

Insp Thomas said police believe the incident was some kind of dispute between neighbours and the victims and alleged offender were known to each other.

Police remain on the scene of a deadly shooting in Mordialloc which claimed two lives overnight. ⁦⁦@theheraldsun⁩ pic.twitter.com/D7kXWsy0RB

— Alexandra Middleton (@alexandraamidd) January 13, 2022

A witness visiting his mother in the block of flats told the Herald Sun he saw a man in his 70s, reloading a gun after he fired at a fellow resident.

Witness Adham Dimacki courageously tried to stop the gunman after he heard the first gun shot.

Mr Dimacki said he saw a group of “seven or eight” elderly people milling around the McDonald St property and wished them a “happy new year”, before hearing a gun shot.

“I jumped in my car, five seconds later I heard the first shot,” he said.

“I turned my head to the left and saw seven or eight of the elderly people just sort of run.”

“I see one of the guys who lives in the complex, loading up the gun again.”

Mr Dimacki said he called his mum to make sure she was okay before yelling at the gunman and trying to “get him away from the other people”.

Adam witnessed the shooting unfold. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Police on the scene of a double murder at a property in Mordialloc. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

“He looked at me, loaded, walked around the corner … and I hear another shot.”

Mr Dimacki said he tried to lure the gunman away from the property, “yelling abuse” at him to no avail, before another gun shot fired.

He said he heard a total of four shots.

“I just wanted to make sure my mum was safe … if he’d shot five seconds earlier I probably could have limited the other four shots, potentially.

“I don’t know if that first shot would have been at me or the guys there to be honest.”

“I didn’t expect it. When I was walking by they seemed all friendly.”

“When I walked up I didn’t think anything of it. When I walked down I didn’t see him with a rifle or anything.”

Forensic officers remove items from the scene. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

The gunman allegedly pointed his weapon at police before his arrest. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

He said there had been ongoing disputes in the housing complex about vaccinations.

While Mr Dimacki said he had heard the alleged gunman was a “lovely guy”, he said he may have been segregated from other residents because of his unvaccinated status.

Mr Dimacki drove to a nearby police station and alerted them to the incident.

Mr Dimacki said he saw one of the victims, a male who also lived in the complex, attempt to crawl to safety before he passed away at the scene.

A neighbour told the Herald Sun one of the victims, believed to be in his 60s and a Hungarian immigrant, was “very lovely” and “very softly spoken”, but was known not to get along with the alleged gunman.

The shooting took place just metres from Mordialloc Presbyterian Church and a nearby primary school.

Large emergency scene in Mordialloc pic.twitter.com/DJqguwwX5j

— tom (@tomwoodau) January 13, 2022

Forensics scoured the crime scene on Friday.

The street was blocked off with police vehicles in both directions, while a large SES truck and tent was stationed outside of the premises where the incident reportedly unfolded.

One neighbour described the scene as “a circus” when emergency services arrived, with a swarm of police and onlookers surrounding the property.

The woman said she saw “a couple of people taken away in ambulances.”

At this stage detectives believe all parties are known to each other, a police spokesman said.

Witness Tom Wood said nearby residents could hear gunshots.

“There was a quite a few people around and they say they heard gunshots”

“I saw people on an ambulance stretcher”.

Mr Wood said the incident occurred near the train line crossing.