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It has been suggested that Paul de Waard be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) |
| 2007 Melbourne CBD Shootings | |
| Location | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
|---|---|
| Date | Monday, June 18, 2007 8:15 a.m. (AEST) |
| Weapon(s) | Llama MiniMax .40 S&W[1] |
| Deaths | 1[2] |
| Injured | 2 |
| Perpetrator(s) | Christopher Wayne Hudson |
The 2007 Melbourne CBD shooting occurred in the Central Business District of Melbourne, Victoria on June 18, 2007. Three people (Kaera Douglas, Brendan Keilar and Paul de Waard) were shot, one (Keilar) fatally,[3] after a gunman, believed to be Christopher Wayne Hudson, 31, a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club,[4] opened fire on the two male and one female victims on the corner of William Street and Flinders Lane at approximately 8:20 a.m. Australian Eastern Standard Time.
On May, 2008, Christopher Wayne Hudson pleaded guilty to the murder of Brendan Keilar [5] and was sentenced in September, 2008 to life imprisonment with a minimum of 35 years before becoming eligible for parole.
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| Christopher Wayne Hudson | |
|---|---|
| Conviction(s) | Murder Attempted murder x 2 Intentionally causing serious injury |
| Penalty | Life imprisonment, 35 year non-parole period |
| Parents | Terry Hudson |
Early in the morning on June 18, a man was involved in the assault of an exotic dancer, Autumn Daly-Holt, who worked in the nearby Spearmint Rhino club[6]. After seeing her dancing erotically the man assaulted Ms Daly-Holt in a King Street bar called Barcode. Following the assault, the man was alleged to have caught a taxi with Kaera Douglas (a 24 year-old Sydney model and travel consultant) who was a friend of Ms Daly-Holt. The man and Ms Douglas who were said to be involved in an apparent relationship[7], became involved in an argument in which caused the taxi to pull over on the corner of Flinders Lane and Williams Street[8]. Two male bystanders came to the assistance of Ms Douglas after noticing she was in distress. As a result, the two men and Ms Douglas were shot by the male involved. Brendan Keilar aged 43, a solicitor who worked for Norton Gledhill was declared deceased at the scene after paramedics worked on him for over an hour. The remaining victims Kaera Douglas and Paul de Waard (a 25 year-old Dutch backpacker) who was shot twice in the chest and once in the abdomen, were taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital with gunshot wounds to their upper bodies and were listed as being in critical condition. Kaera Douglas since had a kidney removed as a result of her injuries. Both are now listed in a stable condition.
Brendan Keilar is survived by his wife Alice, and his three children.
Kaera Douglas was previously staying in the Punt Hill apartments on Flinders Lane on the Saturday and Sunday night prior to the shooting. The gunman was also suspected of staying with her. [9]
The suspected gunman's car was discovered abandoned on Flinders Lane between Swanston and Elizabeth Streets. The black Honda CRV with New South Wales plates was earlier disclosed by police as one vehicle owned by the gunman. The other vehicle owned by the suspected gunman, a black Mercedes sedan, was found in Richmond.[10]
It was uncovered that Christopher Wayne Hudson is also wanted for firearms offenses related to another shooting incident that occurred earlier in the week in Campbellfield, Victoria. It is believed that Hudson fired shots into a trucking company's factory.
At 5:00 p.m., a police spokeswoman confirmed that Christopher Wayne Hudson had surrendered himself to Victorian Police at Wallan north of Melbourne after arranging it with his solicitor. [11] At approximately 4:30 p.m., Mr Hudson walked into the police station and was arrested without incident. Homicide squad detectives have transferred him to St Kilda Road where it is expected he will be charged with murder and other offences in an out of court hearing.[12]
Christopher Wayne Hudson was to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court, but was unable to make it due to a self-inflicted injury. Before turning himself in to police, he is reported to have caused an injury to his arm which required surgery[13]. The magistrate ordered that Mr Hudson be remanded in custody. The formal charges are: one charge of murder in relation to lawyer Brendan Keilar, two charges of attempted murder in relation to Kara Douglas and Paul de Waard, one charge of intentionally causing serious injury in relation to Autumn Daly-Holt and one charge of unlawful imprisonment. [12]
After shooting the three victims, the gunman ran from the scene and dumped his weapon and jacket in a nearby construction site on Flinders Street between Queen and Bonds Streets, where they were found by a construction worker about an hour later. [14] The Rialto Towers were evacuated amid reports that the gunman had fled into the tower, sparking a level-to-level search. Police have named Christopher Wayne Hudson, a member of the Hells Angels, as the suspected gunman.[15]
The alleged gunman was previously involved in a gun related incident on the Gold Coast in March 2006, where he sustained a gunshot wound to the jaw. Since this incident, he has been on the run, and is on bail in New South Wales. [16]
After pleas from his father, and negotiations conducted via a lawyer, Hudson turned himself in to police at Wallan on 20 June 2007.[17]
Collingwood Football Club player, Alan Didak, was interviewed by police with regard to his presence in Hudson's car on the night that shots were allegedly fired in Campbellfield, Victoria. Didak claimed that he was intoxicated at the time, was not in control of the situation and was concerned for his safety. See the Herald Sun article
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