Shot where he stood: Man gunned down in front yard, police hunt for five killers
Police have charged and man and a woman over the death of a baby boy. (AAP Image/Darren England)
The 38-year-old man died after being struck once in the chest by a shot fired at close range at the home in Cliveden Ave, Oxley in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Detective Superintendent Andrew Massingham says four men and a woman armed with a 12 gauge shotgun, and potentially a handgun, were involved in the attack.
“The male deceased was struck at very close range, and we believe the weapon involved was a 12 gauge shotgun,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
Det Supt Massingham said the man had been sitting in a car near the home when the five turned up and started assaulting another man who lived at the home.
The 38-year-old then got out of his car and started running to the man’s aid when he was shot.
The second man has suffered minor injuries and is being questioned by police.
Police are probing a dispute between the two men and the five suspects one to two weeks before the shooting.
“Certainly there was significant conflict amongst the whole group,” Det Supt Massingham said.
He said the dispute was not related to number of recent gang shootings in the city’s south.
The attack lasted about 30-40 seconds and neighbours heard more than one shot being fired.
Detectives are still hunting for the five, and are reviewing CCTV footage of a car leaving the scene, which is across the road from a primary school.
However, Det Supt Massingham said there may have been a second car.
He urged anyone with information about the attack or the whereabouts of the alleged culprits to contact police.
“We have a number of persons with significant weaponry and it’s important that we harness what information is available in the community this morning to set us on the right track,” Det Supt Massingham said.
The shooting occurred across the road from the Corinda State School less than six hours before hundreds of students were due to return to class after school holidays.
There’s also a preschool and a childcare centre on that block in the quiet, mainly residential suburb.
The student drop-off zone was closed on Tuesday morning with parents told to allow extra time to get their children to school.
Meanwhile, the death of a 24-year-old man shot by police in north Queensland will be investigated by the ethical standards command.
Luke Gilbert was fatally shot about 12.20am on Saturday at Airlie Beach’s safe night precinct, after allegedly threatening officers and producing a knife.
He was administered first aid and transported to Proserpine Hospital but died a short time later.
Superintendent Graeme Paine said officers provided verbal directions to Gilbert as he advanced but he continued.
“To carry a knife in a safe night precinct which is a dynamic place… really does pose a significant threat to the public – including the police that are in there trying to maintain the safety of everyone,” he said.
“The officers make an assessment and act on that assessment.”
CCTV footage and body-worn police cameras will form part of the investigation, Paine said.
In a Facebook post, Gilbert’s brother Zac questioned the police’s use of force.
“They didn’t try the taser, the baton or the pepper spray first they went straight for the guns carelessly,” he wrote.
The incident is under investigation by Queensland Police’s ethical standards command on behalf of the state coroner.
