Heart-wrenching tribute to tradie executed in Condell Park in suspected case of mistaken identity
The grieving family of a plumber who was slaughtered by a hooded hitman in a suspected case of mistaken identity have remembered him as a loving, cheeky and kind man.
A young innocent tradie who was gunned down while getting out of his ute at his family’s home has been remembered as a “cheeky” man who was “fierce and full of heart”.
John Versace, 23, was shot at 10 times outside his parent’s Condell Park home in Sydney’s south-west on Monday night, in what police believe was a case of mistaken identity.
The young plumber, who worked for his dad’s business, was farewelled in a traditional Maronite ceremony at St Charbel’s Parish in Punchbowl on Friday morning.
The funeral heard about Mr Versace’s close relationship with both his father and his mother, as a eulogy was read out.
The heart-wrenching tribute was later shared on social media by his sister Deanna and describes Mr Versace as being a “proud mummy’s boy”.
“He always complimented his mum’s outfits, he was affectionate, protective and full of love,” it read.
“She didn’t just raise a boy, she brought up an angel … a real one: cheeky, protective, kind, fiercely loyal and full of heart.
“He never walked past his mum without kissing her, hugging her or spinning her around and saying ‘I love you mum’.”
It also spoke of the “special bond” Mr Versace shared with his father, saying, “More than father and son, they were best friends.”
“Every morning they had coffee together before work. A quiet ritual they never missed. No matter what the day held, they started it side by side then followed each other off to work.”
The funeral also heard how Mr Versace was “raised in love and strength with good values”.
Mr Versace’s mother is from Lebanon and his father is Italian, with the family deciding to farewell the young plumber at the Lebanese Maronite Church next to his former school.
His coffin was taken to and from the church in escort of about a dozen motorcycles, with balloons released into the sky at the end of the procession.
Police are still trying to determine how Mr Versace was so brutally caught in the crossfires of Sydney’s gang wars.
The 23-year-old had no major criminal past and no known links to gangs.
“What I can say in this very early stage is that the victim and the holdings that we have on the victim and his family is that he is not known to police,” Superintendent Rodney Hart said.
“He does not have a criminal record. His family members do not have criminal records. And he, at this stage, I believe, has one traffic offence.”
Police said they possess “good quality” CCTV footage that shows the 23-year-old victim - arriving at his home where he lived with his parents and two sisters.
Moments later, a silver hatchback parks across the driveway and a hooded male dressed in all black exits the rear driver’s side door armed with a small Glock-style hand gun.
Superintendent Hart said a taskforce had been established to further investigate the incident.
“We believe that this has the hallmarks of a targeted execution – very brutal, very distressing,” Hart said.
“So, I want to reassure the community that we are treating this not as a random attack, but what I will ask from our community here is – please, anybody that has any information to assist the investigators to please call Bankstown Police Station or Crime Stoppers.”
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