A man has been arrested in New South Wales this morning as part of the Homicide Squad investigation into a fatal shooting in Keilor last month.
Warrants were executed by Victoria Police and NSW Police from 6am on 25 October at residential properties in Bradbury, Yagoona and Campbelltown.
A 22-year-old Bradbury man was arrested without incident.
He will now be interviewed by police in relation to the shooting.
Today’s arrest and warrants follow an incident outside a café in Keilor on 9 September where one man was killed and one was seriously injured.
The pair were sitting outside the Old Calder Highway business about 10.20am when they were both shot.
A 50-year-old Taylors Hill man died at the scene while a 26-year-old South Morang man was conveyed to hospital with serious injuries.
No one else in the area was physically injured, however a number of other patrons were in the vicinity at the time.
It’s believed several offenders left the area in a black Audi, which was later found burnt out in nearby Blair Court, Keilor.
Investigators believe the group then got into black Volkswagen Polo which was subsequently located burned out in Cadiz Place in Keilor Downs.
Detectives are continuing to treat this as a targeted attack and the investigation remains ongoing.
Police are keen to speak to anyone who witnessed the incident or the vehicle fires, as well as anyone with information about those responsible for the shooting and the motivation behind it.
This information can also be provided anonymously.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
Quotes attributable to Detective Superintendent Janet Stevenson:
“This has been a very challenging investigation. Since this shooting occurred a little over six weeks ago, there has been a significant effort from Victoria Police that has been led by the Homicide Squad.
We have worked closely with the members from the Keilor area where the shooting took place and drawn on specialist units from across Crime Command. We have also received tremendous support from the community during the course of this investigation.
Ultimately our inquiries led us to NSW, and there is no doubt that we would not be in the position we are in today without the substantial assistance provided by NSW Police over the last month.
This is a significant arrest and an important step forward, however this investigation remains live and is far from over.
This shooting was an extreme display of violence in a public setting and those involved had complete disregard for innocent members of the community.
The fear that this type of offending generates along with the high risk of innocent parties being killed, seriously injured or traumatised is unacceptable and deeply concerns us. We will continue to utilise all our resources to find those responsible at any level and hold them to account.
Today’s arrest also sends a message back from Victoria Police to those involved and I hope that message is clear – we will keep going until we find those responsible for bringing this violence to our community.”
