Neighbour suspected target of Sydney student’s mistaken identity killing
Two men and a 16-year-old boy extradited from Victoria have been charged with the mistaken identity murder of a university student shot dead in his bed in Sydney’s south-west.
Marco Tapia, 23, was killed when a group of assailants stormed his family’s Glen Alpine home in the early hours of September 1. Police have since confirmed the wrong address was targeted in the allegedly botched organised crime killing.
Detectives are yet to identify the intended target of the botched attack, but are investigating if the trio was contracted to target a Coconut Cartel member. Tapia had no links to organised crime.
Vaifaalie Tuafuti, 23, Omar Mohamed, 22, and a 16-year-old boy who cannot be identified for legal reasons have been charged with murder, two counts of special aggravated break and enter and committing a serious indictable offence, and possessing an unauthorised prohibited firearm.
All three are due to face court on Wednesday.
Detectives will allege in court that the trio broke into the Glen Alpine home before shooting Tapia in his bed. One of the trio is alleged to have been armed with a pistol.
The trio was extradited from Victoria on September 18, along with a 26-year-old woman, Amenah Abusud.
Abusud has not been charged with Tapia’s murder, but she has been charged with criminal group and accessory offences.
Police alleged during an extradition hearing in Melbourne Magistrates Court this month that the group worked for the notorious Alameddine crime family in a recent spate of violence against rival group the Coconut Cartel.
The trio has also been charged over a home invasion in Hurstville, in Sydney’s south, and the shooting several cars in nearby Turrella the night before Tapia was killed.
Ballistic analysis found discharged cartridge cases at the two scenes were “positively matched” to the Glen Alpine crime scene where a firearm was found, a NSW Police officer testified in court.
The court was told the Victorians left their Airbnb at Campbelltown, in Sydney’s south-west about 1.50am on September 1 and returned about 4am, “where they appear to be in a rush to collect their belongings before all leaving”.
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