SYDNEY: Former UFC fighter Suman Mokhtarian was gunned down in a \u201cbrazen\u201d shooting while on an early evening walk in Sydney, police said, months after surviving an attempt on his life.<\/p>\n
The 33-year-old was shot dead in a \u201ctargeted\u201d attack in Riverstone, a suburb in Sydney\u2019s northwest, on Wednesday evening, New South Wales Police said.<\/p>\n
A short time after the shooting two cars were found on fire in different locations, a hallmark of recent organized crime hits that have rattled the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very brazen and it\u2019s a shame that this is happening in our community,\u201d NSW Police superintendent Jason Joyce said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019d want to think that in a residential area that people could wander the streets at that time of (early) night and be safe, but we do believe it\u2019s a targeted attack,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Local media reported that Mokhtarian had survived an attempt on his life last February, when a gunman fired on him outside a gym in Sydney\u2019s west.<\/p>\n
He fought twice in the UFC, in 2018 and 2019, losing both times, before moving into coaching, according to ESPN.<\/p>\n
He helped develop some of Australia\u2019s top mixed martial arts prospects, the website said.<\/p>\n
A local who only identified himself by his first name, Ben, said he was walking with his wife when he heard a gunshot.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was around then when we heard a bang as well and a lot of smoke went up in the air… that would have been the car,\u201d he told The Sydney Morning Herald.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a large commotion, a lot of people were just shocked because they\u2019ve never witnessed anything like this.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe shooting happened with children literally riding bikes around the park.\u201d<\/p>\n
Neighbour Natalie, who also did not provide her last name, said she was out the front of her home with her children when the incident took place.<\/p>\n
\u201cI called the police straight away,\u201d she told the national broadcaster ABC.<\/p>\n
Natalie said she ran over to see if Mokhtarian was alive, but \u201che clearly wasn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI could immediately tell he wasn\u2019t alive, otherwise I would\u2019ve tried to help him,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The killing came a day after police foiled a \u201ckill team\u201d bearing firearms, balaclavas, body-worn cameras and jerrycans on the way to a daycare center.<\/p>\n
Police are investigating if the two incidents are linked.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SYDNEY: Former UFC fighter Suman Mokhtarian was gunned down in a \u201cbrazen\u201d shooting while on an early evening walk in Sydney, police said, months after surviving an attempt on his life. The 33-year-old was shot dead in a \u201ctargeted\u201d attack in Riverstone, a suburb in Sydney\u2019s northwest, on Wednesday evening, New South Wales Police said. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":507640,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-507629","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n