‘Extreme planning’ involved before botched hit on ex-Mongols bikie Sam Abdulrahim, court hears

In the weeks after a botched hit on gangland figure Sam Abdulrahim, police began following every move of one of the men allegedly involved, a court has heard.

Those wanting to kill organised crime figure Sam “The Punisher” Abdulrahim placed a tracking device on his car and stalked him before shooting him, a court has heard.

Armed Crime Squad Detective Sergeant Bradley Potts told Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday there was an “extreme level of planning” that went into the botched hit on June 25.

Mr Abdulrahim miraculously survived being shot five times in the upper body as he sat in his Mercedes-Benz in traffic after leaving his cousin’s funeral at Fawkner Cemetery.

The court heard two men were following him in a stolen Mazda CX9 when they pulled out beside his car and fired at least seven shots into his vehicle.

“Investigators confirmed that Adbulrahim was stalked by the offenders for approximately one hour before the shooting occurred,” detective Sergeant Potts said, adding that they had also found a tracker fixed to his vehicle.

Ex-Mongols bikie Sam Abdulrahim was allegedly stalked for weeks before being shot. Picture: Instagram

Abdulrahim’s bullet-riddled Mercedes. Picture: Brendan Beckett

Sergeant Potts told the court the two shooters had fled the country on stolen passports within 48 hours of the shooting — and that 18-year-old Yasir Al Qassim had allegedly helped them to flee.

The Epping teen last week became the first person to be charged over the shooting.

Fresh details of his alleged involvement were aired in court as he made a bid for bail, including that he:

• Bought a phone and SIM eight days before the shooting, which was used to assist the two shooters to flee the country in the aftermath

• Went to Bunnings 10 days before the shooting and bought two petrol cans to use to set alight cars they planned to use

• Picked up the first shooter from his Broadmeadows home, and then the second shooter from his Thomastown home and dropped them at the Mazda allegedly used in the shooting ambush

• Organised a passport for one of the offenders to flee the country, getting the passport holder to later falsely report to police their travel documents had been stolen in an armed robbery

• Picked up one of the shooters following the shooting when things went “awry” and he wasn’t at the meeting point

Sam ‘The Punisher’ Abdulrahim in hospital after the shooting.

Sergeant Potts said while Mr Al Qassim was not accused of pulling the trigger, he was heavily involved in the planning.

“The accused has no identified motive to commit the offence, and it can only be assumed it was for financial reward,” he said.

The court heard covert police investigating the attempted murder of Mr Abdulrahim began following Mr Al Qassim’s every move.

On July 24, he was observed attending a disused demolition site in Whitelaw Ave, Epping, where he allegedly retrieved a 12-gauge shotgun from under the sub-floor of the building.

When a patrolling police unit activated their lights, he allegedly dropped the weapon and fled on foot.

A search of the area uncovered a further 3D printed semiautomatic pistol and magazine.

Mr Al Qassim was not arrested until August 29.

Yasir Al Qassim is accused of being involved in planning the hit.

Abdulrahim’s survival was described as ‘a miracle’. Picture: Instagram

Sergeant Potts said the evidence was stacked against Mr Al Qassim, detailing how his latent fingerprints were found on the clone number plates on the Mazda used in the shooting and DNA on a fuel can that was later found in the torched vehicle.

His DNA was also allegedly found on a fired cartridge case located at the shooting scene on Box Forest Rd, the detective said.

He opposed bail, saying Mr Al Qassim was not only a flight risk, but also was known to have access to illicit firearms and was part of a Middle Eastern youth gang that had been involved in suburban tit-for-tat shootings.

Sergeant Potts said it was “a miracle” Mr Abdulrahim survived the shooting, and that no one else was caught in the crossfire.

“The offending took place in a public area, in broad daylight with numerous other road users in close proximity,” he said.

“The offenders discharged a firearm with the sole intention to cause death to Abdulrahim without any regard for the safety of others in the vehicle, or those in the immediate area.”

The bail application, before magistrate Donna Bakos, will continue on Thursday.