Murtada Alessawi fired assault rifle at suburban home in tit-for-tat gang war

A teenager who fired a military-style assault rifle into a Pascoe Vale house left neighbouring residents terrified when stray bullets peppered their homes in the dead of night.

A teen armed with a military-style assault rifle designed to “kill people” terrified residents of a suburban street when he sprayed a Pascoe Vale home with bullets in a tit-for-tat gang war.

Murtada Alessawi and his co-accused, Jaidyn Snowball, put locals of Heather Ave “in fear” on June 14, 2022, when they fired at least 15 rounds from an AK-47 assault rifle and semi-automatic handgun during the dead of night.

Several bullets travelled up to 1km, peppering the properties of innocent people in the neighbouring suburb of Coburg North.

Alessawi and Snowball, both 19, stood in the dock of the County Court on Friday where they pleaded guilty to a raft of firearm offences, including discharging a firearm with reckless disregard for safety.

The court heard the duo appeared to be following the orders of a 21-year-old associate, who was under surveillance by police at the time.

Prosecutor Damian Ellwood said the teens clambered into the man’s Volkswagen Golf where they plotted to use the firearms against a rival – unaware that police were listening in.

Two days later, they arrived at Heather Ave in a stolen van about 1am.

Alessawi, from Epping, brandished the loaded assault rifle, while Snowball, from Bundoora, was armed with the handgun.

Murtada Alessawi leaves the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court. Picture: David Caird

But a person inside the “targeted” house knew they were there and started firing at the teens first.

The pair sheltered behind a vehicle on the street before firing back, with Alessawi continuing to shoot as they made their way to their getaway vehicle.

Mr Ellwood said the neighbours were “put in fear” and “woken with the sounds of shooting in a suburban street”, with the gunfire captured on CCTV footage exclusively obtained by the Herald Sun.

Most of the bullets struck a bungalow at the back of the house, but one bullet travelled 950m, passing through two walls of a house and lodging in a solar panel.

Mr Ellwood noted the assault rifle was a deadly weapon, telling the court: “It can kill people. That’s what it’s designed for.”

The pair was arrested nearby with police finding a note on Snowball’s phone labelled “missions”, including two addresses and the words “family inside the house”.

The prosecutor told Judge Carolene Gwynn that even if Snowball did not write the note, it proved he had knowledge people were present in the home.

“It’s very disturbing that these kinds of military weapons are being used in a suburban street where the risks to others are obvious,” Judge Gwynn said.

She said it was “more disturbing” when they were in the hands of 18-year-olds who appeared to be “commissioned” to commit those acts.

Police arrest Murtada Alessawi before charging him with blackmail. Picture: Supplied

In June last year, a member of Victoria Police’s Armed Crime Squad told Melbourne Magistrates’ Court the shooting was one of eight in the northern suburbs linked to the ongoing dispute between warring youth gangs.

The court also heard on Friday how Alessawi and Snowball joined forces a month earlier in May 2022, committing a “targeted” home invasion in Narre Warren.

Alessawi also admitted to blackmail and attempting to pervert the course of justice while on bail, with the court hearing he demanded a man in September 2022 to take the blame for a “cop chase” Alessawi himself was involved in.

A psychologist told the court he was of the belief Snowball was suffering from complex post traumatic stress disorder and substance abuse disorder at the time of offending.

Snowball’s lawyer Adam Chernok argued his client deserved leniency because he was “akin to a child soldier” and was “effectively being taken advantage of”.

Judge Gwynn said she could infer the pair were given directions to target certain addresses by the older man but had no evidence to confirm that fact.

“I cannot form the view your client is a child soldier,” she said.

The 21-year-old man is facing charges and is due to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court in coming months.

The plea hearing will continue on October 2.