By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A Narre Warren South man has been jailed for his part in a nightclub drive-by shooting in 2020.
Michael Alfred, 22, was accused in the Victorian County Court of being in the passenger seat in a stolen Audi SUV, from which a shotgun was fired at a man at the rear of Chasers night club in South Yarra.
Before the shooting, the Audi circled several times around the venue, which was hosting a live performance by Melbourne rap artist Sean Deng, also known as BBG Smokey.
A man outside the venue was struck in the hand by shotgun pellets.
The SUV immediately drove off, crashed at a roundabout and was abandoned by its two occupants.
Prosecutors alleged that Alfred was linked by DNA samples from a straw in a McDonald’s drinking cup found next to the Audi as well as from screws on the Audi’s fake rear number plate.
He was also linked through his phone’s location and step count, which matched the movements of offenders on CCTV footage.
He also owned a similar grey Nike hoodie as a passenger observed in the Audi.
Alfred was found guilty by a County Court jury of theft of the Audi, intentionally causing injury and being a prohibited person possessing a firearm.
Judge Andrew Palmer said the verdict showed the jury was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Alfred was an occupant in the car at the time of the shooting.
“Given the way in which the prosecution put its case, I cannot be satisfied that you were the shooter.”
The judge noted that the prosecution didn’t seek to establish which of the car’s occupants fired the shotgun, who was the driver nor the motive for the shooting.
Alfred was either the shooter or had an understanding with the other car occupant to intentionally injure the victim, he said.
The jury didn’t support more serious charges such as recklessly causing serious injury in circumstances of gross violence, Judge Palmer said.
“Given their verdict, the jury were clearly not satisfied that (the victim) had suffered serious injury; nor did they make a finding that you planned in advance to have with you and to use the firearm.”
Judge Palmer said the firing of a shotgun at a person in a crowded location was “objectively serious”.
“As a result of his injuries, (the victim) spent more than a month in hospital, underwent a number of operations, and suffered irreparable damage to parts of his hand.”
The attack may have been in retaliation for a drive-by shooting at Alfred’s home, the judge stated. The latter led to Alfred’s family temporarily moving interstate.
Alfred was 18 at the time of the nightclub shooting, with a limited prior history of drug possession.
Since the incident and before the trial, he’d made “little progress towards rehabilitation” and committed drug, driving, bail and car theft offences.
However since the trial he’d landed a job as a florist and not committed further offences. This suggested his prospects for reform were “improving”.
Alfred was jailed for two-and-a-half years with a non-parole period of 18 months. His term will include 264 days of pre-sentence detention.
