Key theories in Bali shooting that rocked Melbourne’s underworld
Investigators are scrambling to work out how gang violence normally confined to Australian shores became international.
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Gangland wars in Melbourne spilled into Bali last month when two men were shot in a targeted attack while holidaying with their girlfriends at a luxury villa on the resort island.
Masked gunmen stormed the Badung rental late at night on June 14 and opened fire on Zivan Radmanovic, 32, his wife Jazmyn Gourdeas and her sister Daniella Gourdeas and partner Sanar Ghanim, 34.
As the attackers smashed their way into the villa with sledgehammers, Jazmyn hid under the covers while Radmanovic was beaten and shot dead in a toilet.
Ghanim – who has a child with gangland widow Roberta Williams’ daughter – survived the attack with a gunshot to the leg, while Daniella fled the scene in terror.
Three Australian men were later arrested by border officials over the murder.
Now, Daniella’s cosmetics business in South Yarra has been firebombed.
Investigators are now scrambling to work out how gang violence normally confined to Australian shores became international.
Here’s what we know so far.
What happened?
Radmanovic and Jazmyn arrived in Bali on June 12 and had planned to stay for five days, long enough to celebrate her sister Jazmyn’s 30th birthday.
Two days later, the group was ambushed in the middle of the night by men wearing helmets.
Ghanim protected himself by tucking his head down and called for help with a gunshot wound in the leg. Meanwhile, Jazmyn – a mother of six – crept out of bed to check her husband’s pulse.
According to a statement Daniella gave to Bali police, she was asleep when she heard an “explosion” from inside the villa.
She fled as the gunman entered her room wearing a mask, helmet and a green jacket. She ran past two scooters parked outside the villa and heard gunshots.
She told police gunshots were fired outside her room and a window was shattered just past midnight.
Police say they have recovered 17 bullet casings, 55 projectile fragments, a sledgehammer, masks and jackets as part of their investigation.
What was the motive?
While the motive is unclear, sources previously told this masthead the plot was likely motivated by a “rip off” in Australia, where millions of dollars were taken from a crime syndicate.
Experts also say the violence was likely the result of a dispute in Australia.
“There’s no way it’s a local dispute. It looks like a hit from Australia. They don’t go and kill foreigners over a local dispute,” a seasoned local investigator said.
“If they want to f**k you up in Indonesia, they plant a pound of grass on you and get the locals [police] to sort it out.”
Balinese authorities say they are working with Australian Federal Police to establish the motivation behind the murder plot.
Jazmyn told police: “I don’t know who [would want my husband dead] … I also want closure, I want to know.”
Ghanim has connections in Middle Eastern organised crime, and previously served time in a maximum security Victorian prison over the 2014 shooting of associate Serkan Kala.
What’s Ghanim’s connection to Roberta Williams?
Roberta Williams is the former wife of slain infamous underworld figure, Carl Williams, whose drug dealing escapades earned him a spot as the subject of hit TV series Underbelly.
Ghanim has a child with Roberta’s daughter, Danielle Stephens.
Speaking about the shooting last month, Roberta said it was a complete shock to her family
Hearing about the deadly ambush, she said, had taken her back to the slaying of her husband, who was murdered inside Barwon prison in 2010.
“I’m devastated. I love [Ghanim] to pieces and he’s a beautiful dad,” she said.
“It’s terrifying.
“This has all taken me back to when Carl was killed. I’m reliving Carl’s murder.
“I think Sanar went over there to get a bit of peace and quiet. I just thank God that he is alive.”
Why was a Melbourne cosmetic clinic firebombed?
Aesthetica Cosmetic Clinic on Toorak Road, near Melbourne’s CBD, was razed by fire about 11.15pm on Thursday night in a brazen arson attack.
The clinic is owned by Ghanim’s girlfriend, Daniella Gourdeas.
CCTV from the store showed a hooded man wearing hi-vis repeatedly smashing the store’s front window.
The arsonist then set the cosmetic joint alight and fled toward Punt Rd.
Several cars continued driving along Toorak Rd just metres from the burning building while a woman, whose car was parked out the front, ran to move her Volkswagen.
No one was at the clinic at the time of the blaze.
No arrests have been made.
Police say it was targeted and will examine the link to the Bali murder.
“Police believe the incident was targeted and will investigate any potential links to any other incidents,” a statement read.
“The investigation into the motive behind the incident remains ongoing.
“A crime scene has been established and an arson chemist is expected to attend the scene.”
Who are the alleged gunmen?
Australian men Darcy Francesco Jenson, 27, Mevlut Coskun, 23, and Paea-I Middlemore Tupou, 26, were arrested by border officials.
Jenson was arrested in Jakarta while trying to flee Indonesia.
Coskun and Middlemore made it through transit in Singapore and then to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where they were denied entry into the country.
They were put on a flight back to Indonesia via Singapore, where they were briefly detained before being flown back to Indonesia on June 17.
As is customary in Indonesia, the trio were then chained by the ankles as they were shuffled before a press pack.
They were wearing orange T-shirts and flanked by guards.
If convicted, they could face execution by firing squad.
What other theories are police looking at?
Bali police say they are not currently looking for a fourth suspect although have not ruled out the prospect of making more arrests.
Chief Inspector General Daniel Adityajaya said: “We are still working on finding the mastermind.”
He said the investigation had unearthed a handgun and three magazines for ammunition – one empty and two containing bullets – dumped in a river. Police had also found a bag containing 18 bullet casings and 27 rounds of ammunition along with a backpack with the logo “Athlete”.
“From our investigation we found out that the crime has been planned and organised,” Mr Adityajaya said.
“The gun (and other items) was found in the river in the rice field area in Tabanan, around 700m from the villa.
“They have planned the act quite long.”
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