Victoria’s emergency services minister, Jane Garrett, has said the state’s police force is well equipped to tackle organised crime following the shooting death of a prominent Melbourne businessman and criminal lawyer, Joseph Acquaro.
In what police suspect was a targeted hit, Acquaro was gunned down early on Tuesday some time after closing his gelato business at 12.40am. His body was found in the middle of a footpath close to the store by two garbage truck drivers at about 2.30am.
Garrett told ABC radio on Wednesday that the incident, which occurred close to her office, was “horrific”.
“There’s a great sense of community so it’s deeply distressing,” she said.
But she added: “Victoria police have unprecedented resources and they are led extremely well by the police commissioner [Graham Ashton]. I know they have taskforces dealing with these matters and I know they, like we all are, are deeply concerned that we’ve had a shooting of this lawyer in our suburban streets.
“It’s a disgrace and I know they’re doing everything they can to address this kind of violence.”
As well as serving as director of the Gelobar store in the north Melbourne suburb of Brunswick East, Acquaro, 55, was also a criminal lawyer who represented high-profile gangland crime figures. He was also heavily involved with the Calabrian community and had an association with the Reggio Calabria Club.
According to court documents, there was a $200,000 contract on Acquaro’s life and he had been warned by police that his life was in danger and to take measures to protect his safety. According to a News Ltd report, the bounty was recently increased to $500,000.
A Victoria police spokeswoman would not confirm the reports to Guardian Australia.
“I’ve got nothing to lose,” Acquaro reportedly told News Ltd recently when informed of the contract on his head. “I’m not afraid of dying.”
He took few measures to increase his safety and refused to change his routine.
The head of the homicide squad, detective inspector Mick Hughes, told reporters on Tuesday afternoon it was too early to say what kind of gun had been used in the shooting or how many times Acquaro had been shot. Police would await the results of an autopsy, he said
Witnesses described hearing loud bangs around 2am and a car speeding off, he said. He added that Acquaro was known to police because the Gelobar had caught on fire in January. But Hughes described that as a “minor incident that wouldn’t result in something as tragic as this”.
Acquaro had no convictions against his name, Hughes said.
“He’s known to police through other associations,” he said.
