The parents of a Sydney university student killed in a mistaken-identity murder have described the moment their son took his final breath, as his family faces a future without him.
Marco Tapia, 23, was in bed at his family’s home in Glen Alpine when attackers stormed the property in the early hours of September 1 and opened fire. His parents, Sergio and Claudia Tapia, said the assault happened with terrifying speed.
“I remember him taking his final breath,” Claudia said. “There was hate that came to our house.”
Sergio said the attack had left an indelible mark on the family. “It’s amazing I didn’t have a heart attack when that happened … when you close your eyes is when you see everything again and again, and again and again,” he said.
Marco’s sister, Cassie, said her brother should have been beside her when she marries in November. The invitations for the wedding were due to be sent on the day he was killed.
“He’s my best friend, and the fact he’s not going to be there as one of the groomsmen is heartbreaking,” she said. “He was just such a warm person.”
Despite the loss, the Tapia family said they were trying to resist anger and vengeance. Sergio said they might eventually forgive those responsible for Marco’s death.
“I thought in this situation I would be seeing fire and brimstone and looking for vengeance. Certainly, there’s no anger in our heart. If you have anger, you cannot have peace in your heart,” he said. “Right now we are striving for peace, and forgiveness will come.”
Marco was in the third year of a biomedical engineering degree at the University of Technology Sydney. He had received awards and volunteered with Engineers Without Borders, while his only known contact with the law was a minor traffic offence.
Sydney gangland shootings
His death was the first of three underworld shootings in Sydney in a matter of days. Joshua Macdonald, 40, was shot outside a Merrylands West duplex the following day after arriving with two children. He did not live at the property, whose owners are known to police and linked to organised crime.
Louis Meehan, a 32-year-old boxing coach linked to the Alameddine crime family, was then killed in an ambush at a Punchbowl car park on September 9. He was shot by an attacker who fled in a silver Lexus.
The violence prompted the New South Wales government to announce tougher measures against organised crime, including a focus on overseas powerbrokers and local figures accused of arranging attacks. The reforms also proposed harsher penalties for teenagers involved in gang-related shootings and firebombings.
The shootings came as the Alameddine crime family and the Coconut Cartel competed for control of Sydney’s drug trade. Powerbrokers for both groups are believed to be living overseas and directing criminal activity from outside Australian jurisdiction.
