Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
AAP
AAP
National
Jacob Shteyman

Seven men guilty of murdering bystander Jason De Ieso

Jason De Ieso was described as an innocent man, senselessly slaughtered in a deadly gang war. (HANDOUT/SA POLICE)

As spray painter Jason De Ieso worked away in his auto repair workshop, he was oblivious to a group of figures concealed in hoodies and masks striding purposefully towards him across the shop's sun-drenched car park.

The expectant father had never met the approaching men - some carrying sawn-off shotguns, another wielding a metal bar - but in a moment they would murder him in cold blood.

After a mammoth five-month trial, a Supreme Court jury on Tuesday found seven men guilty of Mr De Ieso's murder at his Pooraka business in northern Adelaide on November 21, 2012.

They are Musa Alzuain, 30, his brothers Husain Alzuain, 36, and Mohamed Alzuain, 32, as well as Daniel Mark Jalleh, 34, Ross William Montgomery, 38, Kyle Lloyd Pryde, 35, and Nicholas Sianis, 36.

Despite deliberating for more than 30 hours, the jury could not reach a verdict for Seywan Moradi, 36.

A ninth suspect has since died.

The victim's brother, Dino De Ieso, choked back tears as he welcomed the verdicts.

"My family shouldn't need to endure such grief, pain or loss," he said.

"Our lives have changed forever.

"Jason, you'll always be in our hearts. Always cherished, never forgotten. Your infectious smile, humour, kindness and connection you had with all was unique.

"May you finally now rest in peace."

CCTV footage of the incident played during the trial showed four men at the head of the group approaching the shop's roller door in an arrangement prosecutor Jim Pearce KC described as a "firing squad".

Musa Alzuain, a former Olympic boxing hopeful, was fingered as the man responsible for pulling the trigger.

He was 19 at the time.

Mr De Ieso was described as an innocent man, senselessly slaughtered in the crossfire of a deadly gang war.

The men were associates of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang and had been embroiled in an escalating conflict with their rivals - the Finks.

The violence, which began in May 2011, included public brawls, drive-by shootings and a home invasion in which the young son of a bikie was shot in the leg.

It culminated in the fire-bombing of the Alzuain brothers' family home the day before the attack. 

Dino De Ieso (front centre), brother of slain Jason De Ieso
Dino De Ieso choked back tears after the verdicts, saying his brother may finally rest in peace.

The men received a tip-off that their target, a Finks member, was at the Pooraka workshop, but they missed him by a matter of minutes and killed Mr De Ieso instead.

During the trial, the defendants denied they were present at the shooting.

A key witness for the prosecution told the court he saw the accused men at a house before the attack handing around guns and gloves from a duffel bag.

But his reliability was repeatedly called into question by defence counsel.

Musa Alzuain's lawyer, Andrew Fowler-Walker, called him "dishonest, unreliable and self-interested" and said without his testimony there was no direct evidence linking the men to the shooting.

Justice Brian Martin exempted the jurors from all future jury service, given the extent of disruption the case brought to their lives.

"I hope the knowledge you provided such a valuable service is of some recompense," Justice Martin said.

"No doubt right now, there's a range of emotions.

"Do not look back or have any second thoughts about it."

The seven guilty men were handed a mandatory life sentence.

Their supporters shouted cries of "corruption" as they left the court room.

The guilty men will return to court on December 11 for pre-sentence hearings before their non-parole periods can be set.

Moradi will face court again on October 23.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.