Shocking new details emerge about would-be assassin accused of pointing a loaded gun at ‘high profile’ driver

An attempted murder suspect who pointed a loaded gun at a car carrying a child may have an intellectual disability, a court has been told.

Siaosi Maeakafa Tupoulahi, 24, appeared in the New South Wales Supreme Court on Thursday to apply for bail after spending more than six weeks in custody.

Police allege he pointed a loaded gun at a car carrying a child during the failed murder attempt on a street in Sydney’s eastern suburbs at around 8.20am on July 25.

According to police, the child was in the passenger seat of the car while Mr Tupoulahi pointed a gun at the driver for 10 seconds.

According to police, the 24-year-old carpenter had targeted the well-known owner of a luxury car, but accidentally walked up to the wrong car.

He then reportedly fled in a stolen rental car driven by Yousif Zrayka, 20.

When the pair were arrested by police some time later, Mr Tupoulahi reportedly resisted arrest and got into a fight with police, before being subdued with a taser.

Police allege they found a loaded black revolver, a loaded semi-automatic pistol, rubber gloves and gas cans in the stolen rental car after the men were arrested.

Police allege the 24-year-old (pictured) was wearing a balaclava and holding a gun

Mr Tupoulahi and Mr Zrayka were charged with a range of offences, including conspiracy to commit the murder of a prominent person who cannot be identified.

On Thursday, Mr Tupoulahi’s lawyer, Ben Barrack, made a last-minute request to withdraw his client’s bail application so he could obtain more information about his health.

The court was told that a medical report had been provided to the Public Prosecution Service which showed that Mr Tupoulahi had ‘an enlarged vein in his brain’ which was affecting his brain function.

Mr Barrack said the fact that Mr Tupoulahi had a treating neurologist suggested “a real evidentiary basis” for his family’s observations that he had “delays in his process of understanding and taking in information” following an accident at work.

Although the medical report was ‘not at all properly investigated’, Mr Barrack argued that ‘the issue of cognitive impairment is potentially a crucial aspect of the (bail) application’.

If the bail application were denied, Barrack said, his team would have more time to gather additional information about Tupoulahi’s health and “formulate a more compelling argument about the applicant’s vulnerability in custody”.

“Your Honour, you will note that he is a relatively young man and this is the first time he has been in custody,” he said.

“It’s a different situation if he actually suffers from an intellectual disability.”

Mr Tupoulahi was arrested in July over the alleged failed assassination plot (pictured)

Mr Barrack said additional evidence would also allow the judge to make a “proper assessment” of the risk of Mr Tupoulahi re-offending and “would give the court some reassurance that (the alleged offence), which was an aberration in his 23-year life, was something that was unlikely to happen again”.

“I am very concerned that he will actually suffer the consequences of the family and their representation failing today to provide sufficient material to your Honour to enable him to make a proper assessment of these matters,” he said.

“What worries me is that he is young and he won’t get a trial for another year and a half. And this is his only chance.”

Alleged offenders can generally make only one application for bail in the Supreme Court of New South Wales unless they can show that their circumstances have changed.

The prosecutor told the court she did not oppose the adjournment of the bail hearing, following the “very late service” of the medical report.

The professional will remain in custody until he appears in court again later this month

The court was told she had applied to question the author of the report because she said it raised “concerns in relation to some of its content”.

“Now that I have read it and read some of the material, I can certainly understand why he needs to be questioned,” Judge Helen Wilson agreed.

“It’s hard to imagine how he can have both an intellectual disability and be a qualified carpenter who can fully support his family.”

She allowed Mr Barrack to withdraw his request for bail.

Mr Tupoulahi will remain in custody until he returns to court later this month.

He faces 14 charges, including conspiracy to commit murder, possession of a loaded firearm in a public place and assaulting a police officer in the execution of his or her duty.