Gunman on the run after cafe shooting

Ashleigh Gleeson, Sam McBeath and Danielle Le Messurier, The Daily Telegraph

January 23, 2018 2:14am

A 65-year-old man, believed to be a well-known local lawyer, originally from Vietnam, died from gunshot wounds in what police are calling a targeted attack at the Happy Cup Cafe in Bankstown City Plaza at 3.40pm.

The gunman is still at large.

Bankstown LAC Inspector Brad Thorne said there was still a lot of work to do to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

WATCH: Graphic footage in the aftermath of shooting

“At the moment we are still sifting through witness versions and CCTV which have varied so we want to confirm that information before we say.”

The victim’s friend Van Xiang Nguyen said he caught up with the man this morning for coffee and was “shocked” by the horrific news of the death of his friend of over 20 years.

“For me he was perfect, he was a very good man and helped people a lot with their families,” Mr Nguyen said.

Nguyen said that he spoke to the man that his friend was having coffee with in the aftermath of his death.

“People sitting down at the table saw the gunmen walk past and turn round and shoot through the chair. It went bang bang bang, three shots,” he said.

Insp. Thorne confirmed a handgun was used in the brazen shooting but wouldn’t confirm how many times the man had been shot.

Police say the alleged gunman was last seen on Restwell St, and officers are canvassing the area to acquire more CCTV and further identification of the man from witnesses.

A witness named Rima was in a nearby store when she heard four “clear” shots.

“I was inside, I heard bang bang bang bang. I heard a lady scream then saw people running,” she said.

“A couple of minutes later the cops rocked up an barricaded everyone.”

Phoung Lu the co-owner of a nearby bakery said she saw screaming and a man chasing another man.

“When I heard a lot of people screaming. Children and women were screaming. They were running away.

“I saw a few men were running toward a walkway and a man in green was chasing another man and someone called out: ‘They are shooting! They are shooting!’.

“I saw a man on the floor with a lot of blood.

“There was a lady doing CPR.

“It is very scary, last year there was a stabbing and a shooting at the station, three crimes in a year.

Another witness, Zakeaeria said he saw the shocking incident unfold.

“I’ve seen blood, they shot him four times in the stomach.

“They sound like fireworks, I heard four shots.

“A young girl tried giving the guy CPR.

“The shooter was wearing a black shirt and a grey jacket.

“I couldn’t see the victim properly because everyone was in front of him.

“I saw the shooter run away.

The victim’s distraught friend Mr Nguyen said he had had coffee with the victim early this morning but then left to attend to things at home.

When he returned two hours later he saw the crime scene and was informed that his friend was dead.

“It was shocking because I saw him in he morning, I talked to him in the morning,” Mr Nguyen said.

According to Mr Nguyen the victim leaves behind a first wife who he has two grown children with and a second wife with two small children.

He said he hopes that the community gets behind the investigation to track down the perpetrator of the cold-blooded murder.

Bankstown resident Antonio Diaz told The Daily Telegraph that after shots were fired, he saw a man similar in appearance to what other witnesses described running to a nearby street where he was picked up in a car.

“I was on my balcony when I heard two or three gunshots. I looked over, and it was near the Commonwealth Bank, I saw people running around and stuff,” he said.

“It was weird, I was staring for a while and then I saw someone running through West Terrace, and I think someone picked him up. He was wearing a dark shirt.”

Police have blocked off that street and others as the search for the gunman continues.

Duy Nguyen, who was working across the street, said he heard three shots but thought it was a firecracker.

He said the man was sitting with other people at a table outside the Happy Cup cafe.

“At first no one called out for help when he was shot,” Mr Nguyen said. “From what we were able to see he was on the floor.

“I’m a bit shaken right now, it was scary, it happened opposite us.”

Officers from Bankstown Local Area Command, with the assistance of detectives from State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad, will investigate the incident.

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