Code of silence shrouds Altona Meadows ambush killing
Did hitmen kill the wrong target when they opened fire on two men in an Altona Meadows driveway? A code of silence is hindering the investigation into the ambush and the subsequent revenge plot.
Police & Courts
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A code of silence surrounding the murder of a feared outlaw bikie associate has impeded the investigation into the ambush murder of Khaled Abouhasna and the plot to assassinate his killer.
Some of the most dangerous men involved in Melbourne’s middle-eastern organised crime scene came under scrutiny in the Abouhasna inquiry following his shooting outside his mother’s home in April, 2015.
Police say the murder probe is “active and ongoing’’.
The Herald Sun understands there is significant police intelligence holdings about who was behind the hit on the father of six but those with information will not come forward, preventing charges being laid.
Abouhasna, also known as “Kay Kay’’, was popular within outlaw bikie circles, including prominent players Toby Mitchell and Tyrone Bell, although his family deny he was an underworld figure.
About a half-hour before he was shot dead, Abouhasna had called his mother before arriving in his Mercedes Benz with his passenger – who cannot be named for legal reasons – in the driveway of her home in Altona Meadows.
His passenger, a man close to him, is regarded as a notorious northern suburbs crime identity.
Sources say there may have been a falling-out between the passenger and another northern suburbs crime identity some hours prior to the hit.
Not long after the pair parked in the Altona Meadows driveway about 2am they were confronted by one or more gunmen.
At least one assassin is believed to have emerged from a white van which Abouhasna and his notorious passenger suspected was a police surveillance vehicle, before shots were blasted at them.
Police believe Abouhasna was not the intended target of the shooting but instead his passenger, who managed to flee, was the mark that night.
The Herald Sun has been told notorious underworld triggerman Nabil Maghnie was paid $100,000 to avenge the Abouhasna killing but never carried out the work.
That hit was allegedly ordered by the man who survived the attempt on his life at Altona Meadows.
The contract was offered to Maghnie on his behalf by another organised crime figure but that man was murdered when word seeped out to the target.
The suspect in the Abouhasna killing was connected to Mohammed Oueida, who has previously been described in court as “the new Tony Mokbel’’.
Oueida also survived a shooting in 2017 when members of a rival crime family attacked him after he attended a Coburg mosque in 2017.
In January this year, Maghnie was the victim of a second shooting in four years, but this time did not survive.
The shooting, in Epping, has been linked to a road rage incident involving Maghnie’s daughter, Sabrina, which escalated into Maghnie standing over the other party before he became the target.
His killer remains at large.
In a separate incident in 2016, Maghnie was shot in the head and chest while behind the wheel of a car and still managed to drive himself to hospital.
Police say any information provided into Abouhasna’s murder will be “thoroughly investigated’’ and urge those who can assist to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report to crimestoppersvic.com.au.
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