Day of horror on Melbourne streets.
Early on Monday, a gunman shot dead a 43-year-old Melbourne solicitor who went to help a woman in distress.
The lawyer, Brendan Keilar from East Hawthorn, was one of two men who went to the aid of the woman seen struggling with a man near a taxi on the corner of Flinders Lane and William Street, in Melbourne's CBD.
Mr Keilar was blasted in the chest at point blank range and died at the scene an hour later. The gunman fled on foot after the 8.15am (AEST) shooting and police later found a handgun at a nearby construction site, which was believed to be that used in the incident.
As heavily-armed police searched for the shooter, aged in his late 20s or early 30s, office workers were told to stay put and not panic. The gunman also shot and wounded the woman, reportedly his girlfriend, and the second man who tried to intervene in the dispute. The wounded man, who is in his 30s, is in a critical condition at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. The 24-year-old woman is in a serious, but stable condition. Both have gunshot wounds to their upper bodies and have had emergency surgery.
The gunman, described as unshaven and dishevelled, had reportedly just come from the Barcode nightclub in nearby King St where he had been involved in a fight with another woman. Witnesses told police there was an argument outside the club just 10 minutes before the triple shooting. Detective Inspector Stephen Clark said it was not known what sparked the altercation.
An eye witness told Southern Cross Radio he saw a woman being dragged from the cab by her hair on the corner of William St and Flinders Lane about 8.15am.
"She was powerless. A couple of guys came to assist … he eventually pulled out a gun. He shot one of the guys twice. Then he shot the woman and then the other guy.
After the shooting, he just casually walked away."
Another witness, Malcolm Bates, said before the shooting broke out the gunman grabbed a woman by the neck as she sat in a taxi, and tried to get into the vehicle.
"The lady got away and he turned, and shot three people basically point blank," Mr Bates said. "I was right across the road." He told ABC radio the gunman then ran down Flinders Lane toward the city centre. He said the whole scenario took no longer than "the wink of an eye".
Bystander Ross Murchie said he saw the gunman grabbing a woman by the neck and hair. "She was screaming and a guy had her by the hair," Mr Murchie told ABC radio.
"She tried to grab hold of a taxi that was going by and the couple of bystanders went over to ask what was happening. He let go of her hair, pulled out a gun and shot them all."
Eyewitness Zali said the gunman was "as cool as a cucumber" as he cold-bloodedly blasted his victims. "He just went bang, bang, bang, there was no mucking around," she told ABC radio. "There were five shots fired and the people went straight down to the ground. There wasn't even a scream, just a whimper."
The killer has now been identified as a member of the Hell's Angels motorcycle gang, and is well known to police around Australia, due to his numerous crimes.
The lawyer, Brendan Keilar from East Hawthorn, was one of two men who went to the aid of the woman seen struggling with a man near a taxi on the corner of Flinders Lane and William Street, in Melbourne's CBD.
Mr Keilar was blasted in the chest at point blank range and died at the scene an hour later. The gunman fled on foot after the 8.15am (AEST) shooting and police later found a handgun at a nearby construction site, which was believed to be that used in the incident.
As heavily-armed police searched for the shooter, aged in his late 20s or early 30s, office workers were told to stay put and not panic. The gunman also shot and wounded the woman, reportedly his girlfriend, and the second man who tried to intervene in the dispute. The wounded man, who is in his 30s, is in a critical condition at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. The 24-year-old woman is in a serious, but stable condition. Both have gunshot wounds to their upper bodies and have had emergency surgery.
The gunman, described as unshaven and dishevelled, had reportedly just come from the Barcode nightclub in nearby King St where he had been involved in a fight with another woman. Witnesses told police there was an argument outside the club just 10 minutes before the triple shooting. Detective Inspector Stephen Clark said it was not known what sparked the altercation.
An eye witness told Southern Cross Radio he saw a woman being dragged from the cab by her hair on the corner of William St and Flinders Lane about 8.15am.
"She was powerless. A couple of guys came to assist … he eventually pulled out a gun. He shot one of the guys twice. Then he shot the woman and then the other guy.
After the shooting, he just casually walked away."
Another witness, Malcolm Bates, said before the shooting broke out the gunman grabbed a woman by the neck as she sat in a taxi, and tried to get into the vehicle.
"The lady got away and he turned, and shot three people basically point blank," Mr Bates said. "I was right across the road." He told ABC radio the gunman then ran down Flinders Lane toward the city centre. He said the whole scenario took no longer than "the wink of an eye".
Bystander Ross Murchie said he saw the gunman grabbing a woman by the neck and hair. "She was screaming and a guy had her by the hair," Mr Murchie told ABC radio.
"She tried to grab hold of a taxi that was going by and the couple of bystanders went over to ask what was happening. He let go of her hair, pulled out a gun and shot them all."
Eyewitness Zali said the gunman was "as cool as a cucumber" as he cold-bloodedly blasted his victims. "He just went bang, bang, bang, there was no mucking around," she told ABC radio. "There were five shots fired and the people went straight down to the ground. There wasn't even a scream, just a whimper."
The killer has now been identified as a member of the Hell's Angels motorcycle gang, and is well known to police around Australia, due to his numerous crimes.
posted by Gina E. | 1:04 am
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home