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A gym where a father was shot in front of his young son it’s a known hangout for some of Sydney’s biggest mobsters, underworld sources have revealed.
Taha Sabbagh, 40, was shot dead outside the Elite Fight Force gym on Carlingford Street, in Sefton, west of Sydney, at around 6:30am on Thursday.
The 40-year-old father was dropping off his 12-year-old son for an early morning boxing session when he was ambushed by a masked man who ran up to his Mercedes van and shot him six times.
Despite the efforts of paramedics, Mr. Sabbagh died at the scene.
It has since been revealed that frequent gym-goers at Elite Fight Force include high-ranking members of the Comanchero motorcycle gang and senior figures from Middle Eastern crime families.
Taha Sabbagh, 40, (pictured) was shot dead while leaving his 12-year-old son for a boxing session at a gym in western Sydney.
Underworld sources claim that the Elite Fight Force gym on Carlingford Street in Sefton (pictured) is a known hangout for some of Sydney’s most notorious criminals.
“There would be some there who have a lot of enemies and would be targets,” an underworld source told the newspaper. daily telegraph.
Another said that gyms have become ‘de facto clubhouses’ for crime syndicates and bikers.
As investigations into the shooting continue, police have yet to rule out the possibility that the murder was a case of mistaken identity.
NSW Police Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said police believed it was a “targeted attack” but would be investigated whether Mr Sabbagh was the “intended target”.
A source said it was possible Sabbagh had been caught up in a dubious deal.
“He would have been mingling with some very connected people at that gym and anything from a bad deal to an insult could get you killed,” they said.
The gym also counts among its clients members of the notorious Haouchar and Mariam families, 7News reports.
The Mariams and the Haouchar are in league with the infamous Alameddine criminal network, which has been linked to drug syndicates in Sydney and bloody conflicts against the rival clan, the Hamzys.
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest that the gym owners or staff are aware of or involved in any criminal activity.
Superintendent Doherty said Sabbagh was not well known to the police, but was “associated with people who were well known to the police and who had strong criminal activity connected to them”.
“It bears the hallmarks of an organized crime-related murder. However, that still doesn’t mitigate how poor this is, that a 12-year-old has to witness this,” she said.
Taha Sabbagh, 40, with her children next to the black Mercedes that was shot dead as she dropped her eldest son off for a gym session.
Mr Sabbagh’s car after the shooting on Thursday morning, with a tarpaulin covering his body nearby.
Police comforted Sabbagh’s 12-year-old son after shooting
The Mazda 3 used in the shooting was later found burned at the nearby Birrong railway station.
Sabbagh was one of the leading drivers for various luxury chauffeur services in Sydney, regularly transporting high-end clients to meetings and parties, and couples with cash to weddings.
His son was not injured in the shooting, but witnesses heard him yell for help.
Mr Sabbagh’s uncle, Nasser Sabbagh, told Daily Mail Australia that the driver of the luxury car put his arms around his son to protect him when he was shot.
‘Why do people kill other people?’ she asked. He is a good man. quiet man. No criminal record. He goes to work. He spends time with his children.
Paramedics desperately tried to revive Mr. Sabbagh, who was a common presence at the MMA gym. He could not be saved and died on the spot.
A witness, Steve, was the first to arrive on the scene, telling Daily Mail Australia that he heard six shots while working in an office across the road.
“I heard the shots and I ran and the young man, his son, was yelling ‘help, my dad was shot,'” she said.
“I looked inside and there was a man in front of the car, bleeding and slumped over the console. Evidently someone had shot him, there was blood everywhere.
Steve said that despite being shot six times, Mr Sabbagh appeared to be alive.
“Within minutes there were police and ambulances everywhere, it was quite a hectic sight,” he said.
They were working on it for a while.
Police believe they are chasing two gunmen who used a Mazda 3 as a getaway car, which was later found burnt out at nearby Birrong railway station.
Distraught family and friends flooded the street where he was shot