Underworld figure Tarek Ayoub shot dead in Parramatta

More details have emerged after a man was shot dead in what police suspect was a gangland killing, with cops called to a suspicious fire minutes later.

A “long list” of suspects and motives exist for why a man known in Sydney’s underworld as the “Angel of Death” was assassinated in a shooting on Monday.

Now homicide detectives will be tasked with narrowing down those responsible for killing Tarek Ayoub - a gangland figure they believe had racked up many enemies in his short life.

Ayoub, 29, died in an “execution-style” ambush in the carpark of an apartment block on Harold St, Parramatta about 3.30am, after leaving a meeting with an associate.

At least one gunman is on the run and police have taken steps to “prevent and disrupt any further shootings” as they mobilise to calm tensions in the city’s organised crime world.

Sydney gangster Tarek Ayoub was killed on Monday morning.

NSW police investigate a fatal shooting in Parramatta. Picture: Bianca De Marchi/AAP

Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said on Monday that there were “too many suspects, too many motives” to given an early indication why Ayoub was shot.

“This was a targeted shooting,” he said. “It was a well-known criminal identity, (with a) long history of violence.

“To the fact that he was known in the underworld circles as the Angel of Death. That was a nickname provided to him on information we have.

“Mr Ayoub lived and died by the sword.”

About 15 minutes after the shooting, emergency services were called to a car fire in the nearby suburb of Granville.

The suspected stolen car on fire in Granville. Picture: Fire and Rescue NSW

Fire crews put out a blaze that had engulfed a suspected stolen Audi SQ on Abeckett St.

Witnesses have reported seeing multiple people running to a white SUV parked on the same street around the time of the blaze.

Police are seeking that vehicle as part of the investigation.

Det Supt Doherty said Ayoub’s name had popped up in “many investigations” into violent offences in Sydney over the years.

“The list of suspects will be long and the reasons why he may have been killed will also be just as long,” he said.

He said the associate Ayoub was visiting could provide crucial information about who knew of the victim’s movements.

“That person is assisting with inquiries as we speak,” he said.

Police comb the area for evidence. Picture: Bianca De Marchi/AAP

Det Supt Doherty said well organised shootings took multiple people to plan and execute – and officers would work to track down them all.

“There is the people that execute the plan and commit the murder but there is also people that obtain the vehicles, get rid of the vehicles, the ones that pull the strings and arrange the murder, that is what we are looking at,” he said.

Ayoub was previously charged as an accessory to the murder of teenage boy Brayden Dillan, who was shot dead as he slept in his bed at Glenfield in April 2017.

He pleaded guilty to concealing details about the offence.

Det Supt Doherty, the head of the NSW Homicide Squad, said Strike Force Juno had been established to investigate the shooting.

It was the first gangland murder in Sydney for six months after a series of police operations that dismantled large parts of the city’s organised crime syndicates in recent years.

“We want to know who was responsible for this,” Det Supt Doherty said.

“This was a message sent to Tarek and it was certainly received.

“And I think it is a point where it was very loud and clear that they meant to kill him and they left a large number of casings behind to show that they meant business.”

Police are calling on anyone with information, CCTV or dashcam footage to contact police or CrimeStoppers on 1800 333 000.

Originally published as Underworld figure Tarek Ayoub shot dead in Parramatta