Deadly question NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet won’t answer

NSW Premier Dom Perrottet denies Sydney’s gang war is out of control despite warnings from the state’s top cops.

NSW Premier Dom Perrottet has denied gang violence is out of control in the state and insists police are equipped to deal with organised crime despite secret briefings from top cops calling for greater power.

Sydney was rocked by another fatal shooting in the early hours of Saturday morning when 23-year-old Rami Iksander – nephew of recently slain underworld figure Mahmoud ‘Brownie’ Ahmad – was found with multiple gunshot wounds outside his Belmore home before dying at the scene.

It came days after the high-profile shooting of Tarek Zahed, with the Comanchero boss targeted alongside brother Omar, who died at the scene.

Police Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith warned that organised crime was running rampant in NSW and laws weren’t giving authorities enough power in secret briefings delivered to ministers in December, it was recently revealed.

Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith has warned that organised crime is out of police control. Picture: NCA NewsWire /Gaye Gerard

Mr Smith reportedly stated police were effectively fighting against guns with pool noodles.

But Premier Dom Perrottet insisted that police had the upper hand on Monday morning, declaring anyone involved in organised crime would be locked up.

“I know the police are completely across this,” Mr Perrottet told 2GB.

“My clear message is … if anyone is involved in this type of behaviour, in this violence, they’ll be tracked down, they’ll be locked up.”

Mr Perrottet was reluctant to discuss legislation after the damning police briefings surfaced, claiming authorities were equipped with the powers needed to hunt down organised criminals despite the concerns of top cops.

“They have all the resources available to them to hunt these people down and lock them up, and that’s exactly what they’re going to do,” he insisted.

The Premier denied reports that former commissioner Mick Fuller would return to the fore as gang war grips the state, reaffirming incumbent Karen Webb as the right fit for the task.

Premier Dom Perrottet has backed Mick Fuller’s successor. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Nikki Short

In other issues, Mr Perrottet conceded the government needed to improve its flood recovery payment process by loosening application guidelines and requiring less “paperwork”.

“It’s not good enough the time (relief payments) have taken to get out the door,” he said. “That small business grant is the one that concerns me the most.

“Four-thousand applications, (but) 2000 are out the door, so that’s pleasing.”

Resilience NSW has come under fire for its emergency response, with Mr Perrottet admitting he’d like to see “more people on the ground”.

“The areas we can do better, we will,” he said.

“There’s no doubt in relation to support, recovery from floods and other natural disasters, we can do better.”