Authorities say eight people have been killed in cases of mistaken identity in Sydney's gang war since 2021, and when alleged targets who were family members of gang members or innocent bystanders are counted, the figure rises to 14. That’s the body count of a system where the people with the least power keep getting hit while the networks, contracts and overseas fixers keep moving money and violence around like it’s business.
Joshua Macdonald, a Central Coast tradie who co-owned an electrical business, was in a front yard in Merrylands West in September 2026 when a stolen grey Audi appeared. He had parked his work van in the driveway and was with another man and two children. His Aunt Darlene said: "He was a very beautiful man with his whole life ahead of him and that has been taken away." She said: "He was so loved and I am very proud of what he achieved in his very short life." Police believe the intended target, who allegedly had links to the notorious Alameddine crime network, was associated with the property but did not live there. The ABC said it had obtained CCTV capturing the sound of gunshots and the car speeding down the street.
Who Gets Crushed
Marco Tapia, a biomedical engineering student, was asleep in his bed when masked intruders broke in and shot him dead at the Glen Alpine family home. His parents were also at the home when the balaclava-clad gunmen entered. The 23-year-old was in his third year of a degree at the University of Technology Sydney, was a volunteer youth leader and trained in martial arts. After the shooting, Coconut Cartel gang figure Iziah Utai shared a social media post saying the offenders had "popped the wrong person didn't even get the right house". Police believe a feud between the self-proclaimed Coconut Cartel, which takes its name from a historic slur against Pasifika people, and rival Alameddines is fuelling the violence. Iziah Utai is hiding overseas after attempts on his life and that of his innocent father, ex-NRL player Matt Utai, who narrowly survived a drive-by shooting in February.
Chris Baghsarian, 85, was kidnapped from his North Ryde home in February and taken to a Dural "stronghold" according to police. After an 11-day search, his remains were found near a golf course in Pitt Town in Sydney's north-west. Police believe a relative of Sydney businessman Dimitri Stepanyan was the intended target and Mr Baghsarian was taken by mistake. A dozen people have been charged over his death, including a 19-year-old.
Gilbert Shino, 39, was walking with a friend, who allegedly had links to an Assyrian crime gang, when he was gunned down outside a busy Sydney pub in front of patrons in August 2025. The two men were heading back to their car after watching an Ultimate Fighting Championship event at the inner west pub when hitmen opened fire from a Ford Mustang. Mr Shino died and his friend, Maradona Yalda, survived. Police believed Mr Yalda was the intended target. A female pub worker said she heard a bullet "whiz" past her, and patrons told the ABC they saw a "little flash" from the gun and threw themselves on the floor.
Luke Manassa, a 21-year-old university student, was stabbed while visiting the home of someone "well known" to authorities. Police say he was attacked by men wielding machetes in a case of mistaken identity. Police allege the two masked men lay in wait ahead of the attack, which was described as "very, very amateurish". Three teenagers, a 16-year-old and two 17-year-olds, have been charged over the attack. Police allege the contract was for someone else and Mr Manassa was targeted by mistake. He was a well-loved figure in the local Christian-Lebanese community, studying at university and working in his family's construction business.
What They Call Order
John Versace, a 23-year-old tradie, was killed in front of his parents in the driveway of their Condell Park home in 2025. The hitmen had targeted the wrong home. Mr Versace pulled up in his ute before being fired at 10 times, in what police described as a "brutal and execution-style killing". In video taken in the aftermath, his family could be heard pleading: "Who would do this?" Superintendent Jason Box said: "There is nothing to suggest Mr Versace was anything but a hardworking young man who was living at home with his family and trying to set himself up for the rest of his life." His death was one of several that led to the formation of Taskforce Falcon, a new police unit set up to investigate a string of shootings in Sydney, being run by Superintendent Box. Three men have been charged over the murder, one aged 19.
Thi Kim Tran was abducted at gunpoint in front of her child, stripped naked, shot dead, and her body later found inside a burnt-out car in a nearby suburb. Police alleged her husband had fallen foul of a Victorian-based Vietnamese drug syndicate that accused him of stealing drugs. A "contracted kill crew" had attempted to lure the husband out by sending him a photo of his kidnapped wife, but when he could not be contacted, they killed her, Homicide Squad Commander Superintendent Joseph Doueihi alleged at the time. An eight-year-old boy in the home was hit with a baseball bat during the kidnapping and had to be treated in hospital. Nine people have been charged and are before the courts, the youngest aged 20.
Kim Duncan, 65, was visiting her son at his Ambarvale home in Sydney's south-west when she was shot in the leg during a drive-by shooting. The passionate Penrith Panthers supporter had recently moved from Tamworth to Sydney to be closer to family. Police said she had been caught in the crossfire of a beef with a person who lived at the home. Her daughter Cassandra Dowd said she would "never get over" the loss of her mother. She said: "She was our mum. She was happy, she was loving, she was definitely an innocent in all of this." Three people have been charged over Ms Duncan's death, including a 19-year-old.
Bol Deng, 20, was killed during a peak hour drive-by shooting in Fairfield Heights. He was standing outside his home with his family nearby. Police alleged the hit was an act of retribution after his brother was named as the alleged gunman in the assassination of underworld kingpin Alen Moradian in a Bondi carpark in 2023. A 25-year-old has been charged over his alleged role in the contract killing.
Ahmad Al-Azzam, 25, died in hospital after being shot while sitting alone in his car in Greenacre. Police alleged the hitmen mistook him for a member of a rival network, thought to be the Comanchero bikie gang. The men in the stolen vehicle also shot a 22-year-old man and 19-year-old woman who were sitting in a nearby car. Police alleged the innocent members of the public had caught the shooter's attention when their brake lights lit up. They survived. Detective Chief Superintendent Jason Weinstein said: "It's one of the most callous crimes that I've seen in my 28 years in regard to investigating organised crime." Eight people have been charged; the youngest alleged offender aged 21.
Who Benefits From the Chaos
Taha Sabbagh, 40, was driving his young son to a boxing lesson at Elite Fight Force gym in Sefton when a masked man shot him multiple times through his windscreen and car door. Homicide Squad Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said at the time: "It's horrendous to think a 12-year-old had to witness his father being shot dead in this manner." Court documents stated Taha was "seated in the driver's seat of his car and the child watched helplessly from the carpark, screaming". A 26-year-old man was later sentenced to a non-parole period of 12 years over the murder. Court documents said police prosecutors thought the intended target was probably the gym owner, who drove a similar car to Mr Sabbagh, as they could find "no known motivation" for the Sydney father's murder. His brother gave evidence of his devoted and quiet family life, prosocial connections and stable employment.
Amy al-Hazouri, a hairdresser, was sitting in the backseat of a car in Panania with a client when at least a dozen bullets were fired into their vehicle in August 2022. Both the 39-year-old and her client Lametta Fadlallah were killed in what police believe was a targeted shooting of Ms Fadlallah, who was a former partner of an underworld figure. Ms al-Hazouri had recently become engaged, and her family had been planning to travel to Australia from Lebanon to celebrate. NSW Police homicide squad boss Danny Doherty described the shooting as "unprecedented" and said it broke an unwritten rule of not targeting women and family.
Toufik Hamze, 64, was gunned down while getting into a red ute outside his Guildford home in October 2021. His son, the likely target given his criminal connections, was also killed. Their deaths came at the height of tit-for-tat shootings between the rival Hamzy and Alameddine clans over the city's drug trade. A 16-year-old boy was among those charged. The teenager later pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact and was handed a two-year intensive corrections order.
Mustapha Naaman, 29, was in the wrong place at the wrong time, police said, when he and his 23-year-old friend were driving a car identical to the intended target, a white Mercedes. Police said the hit had been intended for two members of the Hamze crime family, who had left a boxing event in Hurstville moments earlier. Instead, the gunmen killed Mr Naaman and seriously injured his friend. Superintendent Jason Box denied NSW Police had lost control. He said: "There's been 800 arrests for persons associated with criminal activity and organised crime networks." He said Taskforce Falcon was a specialist unit created to target organised crime gang violence and public shootings in Sydney. He said a high percentage were juveniles lured in by contracts offered by gangland figures who had fled overseas. He said: "There's been a massive uptake of juveniles committing these offences at the request of someone else … It's the attraction of money that is being thrown around." He added: "They're reckless and they're getting it wrong and there's these horrific murders that have happened." NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane said: "This is out of control," and called for further action to protect the public.