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Two men charged over shooting which left nine-year-old in hospital
Police have charged a second man over a drive-by shooting in Sydney’s south earlier this month where a nine-year-old girl was hit.
About 8pm on Tuesday night, Raptor Squad officers arrested a 21-year-old man in Greenacre following further inquiries into their investigation.
He was taken to Bankstown Police Station and charged with a string of offences, including shoot at with intent to murder, conspire and agree to murder any person, possess unregistered unauthorised pistol in public place and participate criminal group contribute criminal activity.
The man was refused bail and will appear at Bankstown Local Court on Wednesday.
It comes after a loaded semiautomatic pistol found in bushland in southern Sydney will be examined as part of the investigation into the shooting.
Police found the gun on in bushland at Oatley Pleasure Grounds on Saturday afternoon and will put it through forensic and ballistic examination.
A man was charged after a little girl in her pyjamas was allegedly shot in a drive-by shooting at a Connells Point home.
Police allege an armed gunman exited his vehicle and approached the family in their driveway before firing at the girl — but they don’t know whether the man they have in custody was the shooter.
The nine-year-old girl, her mother and two siblings were unloading groceries in the driveway of the Queens Rd, Connells Point home about 6pm on Friday when the alleged shooting occurred.
“This individual had total disregard as to whether this was or wasn’t a child, it’s very clear it wasn’t an adult,” Detective Acting Chief Superintendent Grant Taylor said.
“The (alleged shooter) was very close to that child in pyjamas. I think it’d be very difficult to mistake that individual for an adult.”
The girl suffered a gunshot to the hip and was rushed to Randwick Children’s Hospital where underwent surgery for internal injuries. Police have confirmed the girl will suffer “lifelong injuries” as a result of the shooting.
A woman, believed to be a family member of the young girl, was seen returning to the Connells Point home on Saturday afternoon. Rushing out of a taxi the woman quickly dodged past a police car into the house.
A 37-year-old man was arrested at the scene of a burnt out BMW on nearby Annette St, Oatley a short time after the alleged hooting on Friday night.
On Saturday morning the man was charged with shooting with intent to murder and refused bail to appear in Parramatta Bail Court.
The BMW and a Mini Cooper, both allegedly stolen and with cloned number plates, have been seized as evidence.
But police have since said they believe at least two people were involved in the shooting — leaving one person at large — and they’re unsure whether the man in custody was the alleged shooter or driver in the scenario.
“The premises was definitely the intended target … an individual at the premises is known to us but they were not home at the time,” Det. Acting Ch. Supt. Taylor said.
“Whether the children were the target or not is yet to be determined.”
Police allege the BMW was “lying in wait” outside the home until the family returned, while the red Mini Cooper had been parked on Annette St for a number of days.
Det. Acting Ch. Supt. Taylor said the shooting was part of an ongoing spat between organised crime groups, but not linked to other recent shootings.
“This is a separate incident altogether and although it might be organised crime related, it’s not related to the activities of the current shooting murders under Task force Erebus,” he said.
Neighbours have slammed police for failing to act after the same home was the target of a shooting in November. Police at the time said the attack was a case of “mistaken identity”.
One neighbour, who did not want to be named because he did not want to become a target in Sydney’s bloody street war, said police hadn’t done enough to stop a second attack.
“They’re weak,” he said.
“They didn’t do enough the first time. If they had investigated properly this wouldn’t have happened. We never heard anything back from police after the first shooting.”
The large two storey home, which boasts water views and is positioned between lavish multimillion-dollar homes and more humble properties, is understood to be rented by the family.
Neighbours said the same family was renting there at the time of the last shooting. No one was injured at that time.
Another neighbour said the family mostly kept to themselves but that “bad people” were obviously behind the attack.
“I’m worried about what it means for our street,” he said. “We don’t want this sort of thing here.”
A different neighbour said he was home and heard the shooting.
“I heard four gunshots and screaming so I rushed to the front of the house,” he said.
“I could smell the gun powder when I opened the door. It felt like 30 minutes before police arrived, it seemed like a really long time. It’s scary but it’s obvious only that family is being targeted so at least it’s not random.”
