NSW: Murder accused was acting in self-defence, court told

AAP General News (Australia)
08-11-2009
NSW: Murder accused was acting in self-defence, court told

Eds: reissuing to correct spelling of keyword and name throughout - to Qaumi



SYDNEY, Aug 11 AAP - A man charged with shooting dead two men on a Sydney street knew
them to have violent reputations and had acted in fear of his own life, a Sydney jury
has been told.

Farhad Qaumi, 26, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Bassam Chami, 26, and his high-school
friend Ibrahim Assad, 27, in Blaxcell Street, Granville, in Sydney's west, late on March
29, 2006.

His NSW Supreme Court trial on Monday was told Qaumi admitted shooting the men, but
in his opening address on Tuesday, Qaumi's lawyer Stephen Hanley said his client had been
acting in self-defence.

Mr Chami and Mr Assad arranged to meet Qaumi outside his home on the night of the shootings
to discuss an incident involving another man, Ali Mobayad, earlier in the day.

Mr Mobayad told the court Qaumi had taken exception to him offering a lift to one of
his young relatives, and had confronted him in a "very aggressive" manner.

He said Qaumi pulled up beside him in his car and "leant over to where his feet were
and his motion was cocking a gun back".

Under cross-examination, Mr Mobayad said he didn't see a gun, and only assumed Qaumi
had a weapon.

He told the court Qaumi then got out of his car and asked: "Are you after me?", to
which Mr Mobayad replied "no".

The pair ironed out their issues in a phone conversation later that day after realising
there had been a misunderstanding.

But Mr Mobayad said he then told Mr Chami and Mr Assad about the incident with Qaumi,
and Mr Chami got "a little bit upset and disturbed".

Mr Mobayad said he reluctantly handed over Qaumi's mobile phone number to Mr Assad,
who arranged the meeting.

Mr Hanley told the court Qaumi went to the meeting because he was threatened by the
two alleged victims.

"He had been threatened that if he didn't attend (the meeting) there would be violent
consequences against him and his reputation," he told the jury.

"He feared their reputations, that they were men of violence."

He said his client did not turn himself in to police after the shootings because he
had "received threats from at least one associate of Mr Assad that if he were collected
by police there were people waiting for him in jail and people were looking for him".

The court was told Qaumi's sister's home was targeted in a driveby shooting on March
30, and then his family home was shot at in a similar incident on April 3.

After several months on the run, "the accused changed his appearance - he dyed his
hair blond, because he was in fear, and in great fear of what might occur to him," Mr
Hanley said.

The trial before Justice Elizabeth Fullerton continues.

AAP jsj/hn/cdh

KEYWORD: QAUMI (REISSUING)

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