This day in Crikey: Tuesday, March 23, 2004

March 23, 2004

The media and gangland timeline

Melbourne’s gangland killings stats, a who’s who of Melbourne’s underworld, plus Andrew ‘Benji’ Veniamin, the last day in the life of a hitman.

Sparked by the 1998 murder of Alphonse Gangitano, Melbourne’s gangland killings have shown little sign of ending in the last six years with a string of 21 killings and reprisal killings taking in a 25-year-old and a 62-year-old.

However, the latest shooting of hitman Andrew ‘Benji’ Veniamin may slow thing down somewhat. At just 28 Veniamin was suspected in seven of the gangland murders and without him to pull the trigger, some members of Melbourne’s crime world may be sleeping a little better from now on.

But it may not be that easy. Not even the death of Jason Moran in 2003 slowed down the killings. Moran was the prime suspect in the murder of Alphonse Gangitano. As Gangitano’s right-hand man, Moran and associate Graham Kinniburgh were at Gangitano’s Templestowe house when the killing took place.

Thirteen other men were killed before Jason Moran himself was shot, along with his companion, standover man Pasquale Barbaro, but still the killings did not stop.

The were eleven killings in the three years following Gangitano’s murder, including the shooting of Mark Moran in June 2000, followed by a mysterious calm in 2001 when nothing happened. It reached a peak in 2003, the busiest year yet for gangland murders, with a massive eight murders.

There are several theories surrounding the killings. One suggests there was a feud between Victor Peirce and the Moran family.

The Age’s veteran police reporter John Silvester has speculated on whether Jason Moran had been killed as a payback for the death of Victor Peirce, itself a payback for the death of Mark Moran, itself a payback for the murder of Victor Peirce’s friend Frank Benvenuto. While another theory is that the Morans were feuding with Carl Williams who’d been shot in the stomach by the Morans over a drug deal gone wrong.

Or maybe it was just rival gangs fighting for dominance of the drug market. Whatever the reason the death of Veniamin is sure to have a profound effect.

Melbourne gangland murders 1998 – 2004:

Alphonse Gangitano, 40 — Gangster — Shot dead in the laundry of his Templestowe home — January 16, 1998 (Sunday program claim Jason Moran was responsible for the killing)
John Furlan, 48 — Bombed in his car in North Coburg — August 3, 1998
Charles ‘Mad Charlie’ Hegyaljie, 42 — Notorious criminal — Found shot dead in the front yard of his home in Caulfield South — November 23, 1998 (believed drug or debt-related)
Vince Mannella — Former employer of Victor Peirce — Shot outside his Fitzroy North home — January 9, 1999 (underworld power struggle suspected)
Joseph Quadara, 57 — Bankrupt fruiterer — Gunned down in a supermarket car park in Toorak — May 28, 1999
Dimitrios Belias, 38 — Brighton businessman — Shot in underground St Kilda car park — September 9, 1999
Gerardo Mannella, 31 — Shot in a North Fitzroy street after talking to and trying to escape from two men — October 20, 1999 (possibly killed by rivals who thought he planned to avenge brother’s murder)
Francesco Benvenuto, 52 — Melbourne fruit and vegetable market wholesaler (Victor Peirce’s friend and Moran associate) — Found shot dead at the wheel of his car in Beaumaris — May 8, 2000
Richard Mladenich, 37 — Career criminal — Shot dead in a St Kilda motel room in front of three other people — May 16, 2000
Mark Moran, 36 — Jason Moran’s half-brother — -Shot dead after getting out of his car outside his Aberfeldie home — June 15, 2000 (suspect Andrew Veniamin — possibly pay back for the killing of Benvenuto)
Dino Dibra, 25 — Drug dealer — Shot outside his Sunshine West home — October 14, 2000 (no. 1 suspect Andrew Veniamin)
Victor Peirce, 42 — Career criminal, acquitted of the 1988 Walsh St police murders — Shot in his car in Bay Street, Port Melbourne — May 1, 2002 (suspect Andrew Veniamin)
Paul Kallipolitis — Drug dealer — Body of found shot dead in his Sunshine West home — October 15, 2002 (no. 1 suspect Andrew Veniamin)
Nik ‘The Russian’ Radev — Standover man and drug dealer — Shot repeatedly in the head and chest in Queen Street, Coburg — April 15, 2003 (no. 1 suspect Andrew Veniamin)
Jason Moran, 36 — Drug trafficker — Shot in a van at a football clinic at Essendon North with five children in the back — June 21, 2003 (suspect Victor Brincat — possibly as a payback for the death of Victor Peirce)
Pasquale Barbaro, 40 — standover man — Shot in a van at a football clinic at Essendon North with five children in the back — June 21, 2003 (suspect Victor Brincat)
Willy Thompson, 39 — Shot in his car after leaving the Extreme Jiu-Jitsu and Grappling club in Chadstone — July 21, 2003
Mark Mallia, 30 — Radev enforcer — The charred remains of Mallia were found in a drain in West Sunshine — August 18, 2003 (no. 1 suspect Andrew Veniamin)
Housam Zayat, 32 — Violent criminal — Forced from his car and shot dead in a paddock near Werribee — September 11, 2003 (Nicholas Ibrahim charged)
Michael Marshall — kick boxer and hotdog dealer — Shot getting out of his car outside his South Yarra home in front of his five-year-old son — October 25, 2003 (Victor Brincat and Thomas Hentschel have been charged with the killing)
Graham ‘The Munster’ Kinniburgh, 62 — veteran safebreaker and standover man — Ambushed and shot returning to his home in Kew, but Kinniburgh got a shot off at his assailant before dying — December 13, 2003 (no. 1 suspect Andrew Veniamin)
Andrew ‘Benji’ Veniamin, 28 – hitman — Shot at La Porcella restaurant in Carlton — 23 March 2004 (allegedly shot by Dominic ‘Mick’ Gatto, 48)

Today’s murder of alleged hitman Carl Williams’ bodyguard brings to 22 the number of killings in Melbourne’s gangland war — and further increases pressure on police to bring to justice the perpetrators.

Andrew ‘Benji’ Veniamin was shot dead at La Porchella restaurant in Carlton at 2.45 this afternoon after an argument — presumably not about the topping on his pizza.

Police moved quickly, arresting Lygon St criminal enforcer Mick Gatto at the scene. News reports suggest he is claiming self defence.

Just hours earlier, a magistrate had refused a police request to take a DNA sample from accused gangland murderer Victor Brincat in a bid to link him to the execution-style killing of Melbourne crime boss Jason Moran.

‘Benji’ and Williams were in court offering moral support so today we have the rare situation of having live television footage of a murder victim on the day of his death.

The death of Williams’ protector — in the heart of the precinct controlled by ex-boxer Gatto — puts the heat on police although at least they they have detained someone, unlike most of the other murders where no-one was even taken in for questioning.

Gatto was a noticeably high-profile mourner at the funeral of underworld elder statesman Graham ‘the Munster’ Kinniburgh earlierthis year. He has risen up the crime ranks, and was considered a successor to the Munster as a director of the underworld board.

Incredibly, Carl Williams bobbed up at a media conference held by police at 4.15pm, and was chased down the street by TV cameramen after being recognised standing just behind the media scrum. Williams then hopped into a stranger’s car and locked himself in a petrol station toilet as he tried to lose the chasing hacks.

A silver Mercedes, presumably driven by Veniamin, remained double parked outside the scene. The Age online named Veniamin as the victim, citing police sources. Sky News stuck their necks out early in the piece reporting that ‘Benji’ was believed responsible for at least four of the underworld killings, including that of alleged Walsh St police killer Victor Pierce.

This is arguably the most sensational of the underworld killings so far and no doubt the story will run and run.