Police Have Arrested a 31-Year-old Man in Relation to an Attempt to Kill a Sydney Underworld Figure Last Year

Three people were treated for gunshot wounds after the attack. ( ABC News: Patrick Thomas ) Police have arrested a 31-year-old man in relation to an attempted gangland hit in Sydney's west last year. The man is alleged to have been one pf two gunmen who fired on underworld figure Samimjan Azari in an Auburn kebab shop.

The shooting was the fourth attempt on Mr Azari's life after a split in the Alameddine crime family sparked a wave of violence. Police have arrested an alleged gunman over the attempted assassination of a Sydney gangland figure in a suburban kebab shop last year. Taskforce Falcon detectives and the Raptor Squad raided a home in Narwee about 12pm on Friday where a 31-year-old man was arrested.

He was taken to Campsie police station where he is expected to be charged. Two masked men entered the kebab shop. ( ABC News: Patrick Thomas ) The target of the Auburn shooting in 2025, Samimjan Azari, survived being shot in the shoulder.

His associate Kali Taiseni, 25, was shot in the face and police said he was expected to have life-long injuries. A 47-year-old shop worker was also shot during the melee. Speaking to reporters on Friday afternoon, Taskforce Falcon Commander Detective Superintendent Jason Box revealed the second gunman who stormed the kebab shop that day died overseas.

"Investigators have identified the second shooter, who we allege fled the country on the 25th of June, 2025 shortly after the shooting to Thailand," he said. "We were informed he passed away from a motor vehicle accident on the 23rd of July, 2025. "What I was told from the Thai authorities is that he was in that country meeting up with another person. "We believe, he [the other person] was connected to organised crime and [the second gunman] was involved in a motor vehicle accident, which resulted in fatal injuries.

Superintendent Box said the man arrested on Friday had been "a person of interest for this investigation for some time"." Police said forensic evidence led to the 31-year-old being arrested. The attack was the fourth time hit men had attempted to kill Mr Azari, who became a focus of underworld rivals after a split in the powerful Alameddine crime family. The first in February saw a gunman narrowly miss Mr Azari in Brighton-Le-Sands in February last year.

In May, Mr Azari survived the shooting that claimed the life of former Alameddine clan member Dawood Zakaria at Granville. On June 13, hit men lay in wait at Rosehill only for Mr Azari to escape without a bullet being fired. Two days later, the two hit men stormed the kebab shop at Auburn.

The Alameddines operate a crime network out of Western Sydney, though its major players have since fled to Lebanon. Taskforce Falcon was set up after the May shooting in Granville to stem the violence sparked by an internal feud in the Alameddine crime network. Look back at how ABC readers and other Australians responded to this live moment.

That's it from the NSW Police and Superintendent Box. For more updates on this story head to the ABC News website.