And since their areas dont have a lot of police presence, they act a lot more openly and get into turf wars quite often. You might think all this talk is something to be concerned about, but dont freak out about it! If I opened up my lunchbox and pulled out a Lebanese roll, I would get hassled. The Asian gangs in Sydney were infamous for street-level heroin trade. 'The rationale behind targeting each other is obviously drug related. The Ones That Didnt Make It: Australia-Bound Refugees Languish in Indonesia, Circle Sentencing: Alternative Justice in Australia, Wildfires Scorch Australia As Temperatures Reach Record Highs, Nelson Mandelas Extraordinary Life: An Interactive Timeline, How Did Gaddafi Die? They can expect us to be in their face. 'Whoever pulled this stunt is a madman for sure. Salim, 18, and Toufik, 64, were targeted as they sat inside a ute at Osgood Street around 8.55am. While they may be smaller compared to their city counterparts, theyre also one of the more dangerous groups. Mohammad, better known as 'Butch',arrived at John's clifftop home and attempted to provoke a confrontation over money. The year did not start well in Sydney's Harris Park. A former member of his brother Bassam's gang Brothers 4 Life, Mejid was connected to several underworld killings. Low 37F. The Beqaa Valley, a fertile valley in east Lebanon and one of the country's most important farming regions, is also known for being one of the most important cannabis cultivating regions in the Middle East. Haouchar lost his eye in a drive-by shooting at his family's Merrylands home in 2008. 'We will be targeting associates and known offenders. In addition to the mentioned Ibrahim members, the Haouchars have also had a long running feud with some of the Hamzys. He was brought undone by a personal killing. The bank was definitely involved in laundering (for a 22 per cent fee), tax fraud, and stealing from investors, and has been Keep Reading, All around the world, first and second generation immigrants often form a higher proportion of criminals than of the general population. Hes known as the true Australian godfather his influence reached all corners of Australia, from Queensland to Victoria and beyond. The important thing to remember is to always report any suspicious activity to the authorities, and if a situation seems sketchy, stay away! Despite being accused of murder, assault, race-fixing, bribery, illegal gambling and. Although he never committed any murder himself, this standover man ordered more hits than any other organised crime figure in Sydney. The 12 questions you NEED to ask before moving in with your partner, according to a relationship expert. A source close to Bassam told Daily Mail Australia he was 'shattered' at news of his brother's death, which came just months after the passing of his father. 'Organised crime is not going anywhere, you can't regulate it, and so you need them to self-regulate. Inside Matt Hancock's 41-hour battle to save his career when photo of 'a snog and heavy petting' with aide 'Arrested at the airport? 'There's no great mystery that families who come here with nothing will do the hard yards and whatever it takes to get money, and many individuals end up in crime.'. 'This guy was well connected and loved by heaps of heavies. The family name first came onto the radar of police in the mid-1990s, when Khaled was jailed for his role in a drug ring. While Talal will be off the streets for at least the next decade, his five relatives have continued to develop into a prominent crime entourage in western Sydney. February 27, 2023 equitable estoppel california No Comments . Originally from Lebanon, Hakim established his empire in Australia after emigrating to Sydney in 1952. Decent, law-abiding Lebanese Australians would cringe at the loathing reaped by Skaf and his vile cohorts for citizens of their shared background. Learn about Sydneys vicious criminal underworld. He had connections everywhere: judges, politicians. A source close to the Alameddines said: 'For years there were multiple families in that area, but most of the other ones were too focused on each other in the end.'. The family conflict between the Lebanese-Australian clans involved multiple murders, shootings, assaults and weapons thefts in western Sydney from 2001 to 2009. As a high influx of predominately Lebanese people moved in to Sydney they settled in the Bankstown region in Sydney's South West. The SCPOs prevent them from having more than one mobile phone, using encrypted messenger services like WhatsApp or Wickr, or carrying more than $10,000 in cash. But these days its worse. Her journalism career began in early college at the University of California, Irvine where she . Do not sell or share my personal information. Australian Bikie Gangs: Complete List of Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs, McPherson decided to take Hakim under his wing and offered protection to the would-be gangster. Khaled and Lola Hamzy moved their family to Australia in the 1970s as civil war erupted in Lebanon. Bassam's cousin Mohammed 'Little Crazy' Hamzy (right) is currently serving time in jail for shooting two men in 2012. Days before the 34-year-old was fatally shot in the heart of Sydney, NSW Police had gone to his home and warned him that his life was in danger. After finishing school, Basha became involved in more serious crimes. Bassam will not be eligible for parole until at least 2042. In 1999, his son Bassam shot dead a teenager during a night out in Sydney and was himself jailed for 21 years. The Hamzys believed Assaad had been paid by another notorious group to carry out a drive-by shooting on the family's matriarch Maha, that left her wheelchair bound. Sydney Morning Herald warned: Sydney Gang Wars: The Battle Of Blood Alley & The Battle of Kellet Street, Just recently, in July of this year, a fight broke out in broad daylight in a busy intersection outside Westfield Parramatta. The execution death of Bilal Hamze has sparked fears of a gangland war in Sydney's western suburbs, where Middle Eastern crime gangs have long run rampant. 'There's no great mystery that families who come here with nothing will do the hard yards and whatever it takes to get money, and many individuals end up in crime.'. Today, Lebanese crime gangs in Sydney and all over Australia are notorious for weapons & drug trafficking, money laundering, and other crimes. About Us; Staff; Camps; Scuba. Mohammad, better known as 'Butch',arrived at John's clifftop home and attempted to provoke a confrontation over money. In total 22 people were banned from certain areas in Sydney's west and east. [4] Some of the more notorious Arab mafia families include the infamous el-koura Younes Clan, the Shams Clan the Al Zein Clan[5] and the Miri Clan from Bremen. RELATED: MAFS Daniel breaks silence on criminal charge. February 27, 2023 . Well, not so much. Sydney A. Charles joined the 4 News Now team as a Breaking News Anchor and Producer in June of 2022. Finally, the rural areas of Sydney are home to small-time gangs who act as enforcers for the bigger gangs in the city. The geographic heartland of Australias 100,000-strong Lebanese community, its red brick apartments and cement-sheet homes are peppered with mosques, musallas and churches. In Sydney, Disaffected Lebanese Kids Caught in Spiraling Gang Violence Facing racism at school and pressure at home, children from Middle Eastern families in Australia are dragged into world. Drugs are manufactured and brought in from the more rural parts on the outskirts of Sydney, often overseen by Western Sydney gangs. While Sydney crime figures have been dropping steadily for the past couple of years, there's data (like the Campbelltown crime rate) that tell of a much larger problem facing New South Wales. Hamzy, 44, was gunned down in the driveway of his home at Condell Park at 7.30am on Monday, October 17 by two balaclava-clad gunmen. They and their crew have established a stronghold around Merrylands - an area criminals have fought for control for years. Criminals are coming together from a really diverse range of backgrounds to do bad things together. Nevertheless he acknowledges Middle Eastern organized crime in the city is not going to go away and more research is needed. Supporters including Rachad Alameddine (front) leave court after Talal Alameddine was given a 13-year sentence in 2018 for supplying the gun used to kill police accountant Curtis Cheng, Bilal Alameddine (left) could face more than five years in jail when he is sentenced on gun and drug running charges on December 11. There were multiple acts of senseless violence, including weapons theft, shootings, and murders. Write by: . 61K views, 233 likes, 5 loves, 107 comments, 41 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from 7NEWS Sydney: Police trying to head off a gang war in Sydney have seized weapons and drugs from a member of the. Osman's brother Bilalfled Australia for Lebanon in 2018, but remains a key person of interest over a spate of murders - however Australia and Lebanon have no extradition treaty. Mom who lost both sons to fentanyl blasts laughing Biden, Two Russian tanks annihilated with bombs by Ukrainian armed forces, Isabel Oakeshott receives 'menacing' message from Matt Hancock, Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' 2015 Sydney Crime Museum. Powerful members involved in criminal activity tend to come and Keep Reading, Earlierwe met Redfern-based Frank Hakim, the first major Lebanese criminal in Sydney, and younger men such as Louis Bayeh and Danny Karam. Find out what Uber drivers really think of you! RELATED: Australian Bikie Gangs: Complete List of Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs. By Josh Hanrahan For Daily Mail Australia, Published: 09:29 GMT, 16 November 2020 | Updated: 02:47 GMT, 18 June 2021. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. Khaled and Lola Hamzy moved their family to Australia in the 1970s as civil war erupted in Lebanon. But the bans lasted just 72 hours, meaning were quickly back roaming once again. The very next day, bullets were fired into the home of another Alameddine. All rights reserved. So the problem we have now in Sydney is a ramification of what has been going on in Lebanon.. While you still have the ordinary hooligans that populate the quieter parts of the metropolis (like the Bankstown gangs) most key players in Sydney's gangs have all been funded by foreign criminals. Sydney Morning Herald warned: "Criminal gangs in the Vietnamese community are increasingly heavily armed, are moving into drugs and gambling, establishing links with Australian crime figures, and becoming involved in standover rackets in their own community.". Italian crime figures Carl Williams, Jason Moran, Mark Moran, Mick Gatto, and Alphonse Gangitano split up into factions with each of them fighting for power and influence. The main center of Arab organized crime is Sydney, with a significant community of 120,000, followed by Melbourne. At 2am that Saturday, the home of Maha Hamze was shot at in a drive-by attack. What Type Of Organised Crime Are These Families/Gangs A Part Of? His cousin Mahmoud, a fellow Brothers 4 Life member, was also shot dead in 2013 as he was caught in the middle of an attempt on another cousin,Mohammed 'Little Crazy' Hamzy. Sydney crime bosses, on the other hand, tend to look more like seasoned thugs. Lebanese organized crime syndicates generally are active globally, largely due to the mass Arab population. In recent years 26-year-old Talal's brother Rafat, 28, and cousins Bilal, 21, Jihad, 31, Rachad (sometimes 'Richad'), 28, and Hamdi Alameddine 27, have all faced serious criminal matters in court. He actively avoided publicity, keeping his criminal acts to a minimum (compared to other crime bosses, at least). In only four Sydney. We have already seen with Robert Trimbole an example of how Keep Reading, The mafia is a general term used to describe organised crime gangs of predominantly Italian ancestry around the world. The crime families mostly targeted each other, after Adnan Darwiche and Bilal Razzak (both sons of their families respective patriarchs) got into a brawl at Nemras Cafe in Bankstown on February 25, 2001. calling them lebanese simply And these guys are well armed. All rights reserved. They know we will come knocking on their door.'. A contract gunman and an associate of Osman Houchar, Assaad was believed to have been the trigger man. Prior to his assassination, Mejid Hamzy was more than happy to fly under the radar as he went about his business in the underworld. 2023 TIME USA, LLC. He will call Goulburn Supermax, Australia's most secure prison home until at least 2042, Bassam's father Khaled (left) moved his family to Australia in the 1970s and was himself jailed in the mid-1990s on drugs charges. The mafia came to Australia with the Italian cane cutters who arrived in Queensland in the 1920s, and grew as the Italian population swelled with post-war migration. They are known for having control over the Merrylands area in west Sydney, Police believe Mejid Hamzy was responsible for the shooting death of Hamad Assaad, a close associate of Osman Haouchar (left) who is pictured with his wannabe standover man cousin Mohamad 'Butch' Haouchar (right). Sydney Terrorised By Lebanese-Muslim Crime Gangs (Miranda Devine's article from the Sydney Morning Herald on 22 December 2005.) But while life behind bars is intended to be a deterrent for reoffending, it was where Hamzy thrived. Facing racism at school and pressure at home, children from Middle Eastern families in Australia are dragged into world of organized crime and ethnic bloodletting, Lebanese youths are searched by Australian police in Sydney. Sydney Crime Museum is an online history of crime in Sydney, which has often affected the lives of ordinary people and popular culture as well as corrupting the processes of policing, justice and government. The very next day, bullets were fired into the home of another Alameddine. On the other hand, Middle Eastern crime in Sydney has spiked lately because of the inflow of drugs from rural areas and abroad. The street side brawl came a day before a series of shootings at homes linked to both a Hamzy and Alameddine relative. While the heart of their operations tends to remain in city centres, police investigations have shown that they manage operations all around the country.