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Residents of communities caught in the crossfire of Western Sydney's gang war say they are fearful and angry, after a series of mistaken identity shootings.
Residents impacted by gang violence and mistaken identity shootings say they are "scared" and "unnerved". A Glen Alpine business owner says some friends are "really quite angry" about the mistaken shooting death of a local.
Residents caught in the crossfire of Western Sydney's gang violence say they are fearful and angry after a series of mistaken identity shootings linked to organised crime. Young people are increasingly being hired by offshore criminals to commit what NSW Police has called "disorganised" crime, in an evolution of the city's underworld activity.have been charged with the alleged mistaken-identity murder of innocent university student Marco Tapia at a Glen Alpine home last month.
The ABC has spoken to people concerned about the prevalence of gun and organised crime in Western Sydney, who requested their names be changed, fearing the consequences for their safety and businesses for speaking publicly. Recently, she had considered leaving because of criminal activity.
"It has put a lot of fear into us and it's not just about being involved in crime anymore. Jessica said hearing about her clients' brushes with recent gun-related incidents and underworld shootings had "really hit home".at Norwest last month, in a home with men linked to organised crime present, went to a client's daughter's school. She said she had clients who live near where Mr Macdonald was killed in Merrylands West.
"It's not safe. It's very scary.
""I was having this conversation with my dad. I'm like, 'We need to all just pick up and go', but where are we going to go?
" she said. Cumberland City Council Mayor Ola Hamed said it was "terrifying" that the shootings were encroaching on public spaces.
"We are concerned that gang-related crime is on the increase, but I can't imagine people are taking drastic measures because they are just so concerned. "Detective Superintendent Joe Doueihi said a group of three males charged yesterday with the alleged murder intended to target someone who lived on the same street as Mr Tapia.
"We will allege they were contracted as hired guns by an organised crime group to attend New South Wales and commit these violent acts, including the murder of Mr Tapia," Superintendent Doueihi said. "Mistaken identity, it just leaves you wondering if there's a drug dealer or someone with the same name as me, that they are going to kick my front door down," he said.
" so sad that someone just not even remotely connected with any sort of that business loses his life over just a complete and utter blunder. "They are really quite angry that someone comes into their neighbourhood and does that to some poor, innocent young man. ""They broke in the dead of night and took that poor lad's life," he said.
He said the solution probably lay with families, but acknowledged there may be "generations of completely lost people" who were victims themselves. Jessica said crime rates had become worrying, but in the last month or so, it had left her on edge and led her to change her behaviour.
"Now, I wouldn't feel safe for my kids to play outside, or my extended family when they come over. " She said she would rather stay inside when it was dark and when she went for a walk she would take her husband. Fear has also begun to creep into daytime routines with her toddler, such as taking them to the park.
"How are they all here around us? You don't know who's who anymore," she said. In mid-September, Detective Acting Chief Superintendent Matt Craft said NSW Police was identifying threats early, disrupting criminal networks and holding people accountable.
"In September alone, Taskforce Falcon has conducted over 668 proactive taskings, which can vary from simple door knocks to the foiling of live murder plots," he said. "This year alone, over 100 acts of violence or murders that we've been able to interdict, talk to individuals, and prevent them from occurring.
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