An innocent man has been shot dead in a home invasion believed to be linked to an ongoing conflict between Middle Eastern and Pacific Islander gangs in Sydney, days after another man was wounded in a similar attack.
Biomedical engineering student Marco Tapia, 23, was killed by balaclava-clad gunmen who burst into his home in Glen Alpine, in the city’s southwest, at about 3.40am on Tuesday. He died of a gunshot wound to the neck.
Tapia had no criminal history and his family is not known to police, and the killing is being investigated as a case of mistaken identity. It is the 50th shooting in Sydney this year so far.
Police are investigating whether the killing was linked to the shooting of Lebanese man Emad Alameddine, an innocent relative of Bilal Alameddine, an alleged key figure in the Alameddine organised crime network, which is at war with Pacific Islander gang the Coconut Cartel.
Emad was shot in the back in a home invasion in Guildford over the weekend, and was on parole after serving a prison sentence for driving offences, but is not believed to be involved in criminal activity, organised crime, or the gang named after his relatives.
After Tapia was gunned down, Iziah Utai, an alleged co-founder of the Coconut Cartel, posted on Instagram: “Popped the wrong person, didn’t even get the right house”, accompanied by a song by rapper Ali “Ay Huncho” Younes, who is allegedly a senior Alameddine figure.
Utai, whose NRL star father Matt Utai was shot five times earlier this year, also posted a video of himself dancing with a gun after the Alameddine shooting.
Tapia’s relatives told The Daily Telegraph he was “a good boy”.
“Its been a shock to everyone in the family because we love him,” a female relative said.
“He’s such a good boy. I heard that there’s been a lot of home invaders and stuff like that but we never thought that Marco would be one of the victims. He’s a real professional, finishing his degree and having plans for his future.”
In May 2025 another innocent man with no gang linked, plumber John Versace, was allegedly shot dead outside his home in Condell Park.
Header image: Left, Marco Tapia (LinkedIn). Right, Police at the scene (9News).
