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Comanchero bikie enforcer Tarek Zahed has been speaking to associates from his hospital bed just weeks after being shot 10 times in Sydney‘s latest gangland shooting.

The outlaw group’s sargeant-at-armsĀ has been left almost completely blind and now could lose his leg and arm after being shot alongside his brother in a brazen gangland hit outside aĀ gym in the city’s south-west.

Zahed, 41, and his brother Omar, 39, were gunned down in a hail of at least 20 bullets as they left the Bodyfit Gym in Auburn on May 10.Ā 

Omar died at the scene while his older brother was rushed to hospital fighting for life.Ā He was taken into surgery after with ten bullet wounds to his head and body, and is now in a serious but stable condition.

A senior physician at a Sydney hospital told the DailyĀ Telegraph Zahed’s survival was ‘incredible’ and he should ‘rush out and buy Powerball tickets’.

Tarek Zahed's miraculous recovery has now seen him speaking to associates from his hospital bed after being shot 10 times earlier this month

Tarek Zahed’s miraculous recovery has now seen him speaking to associates from his hospital bed after being shot 10 times earlier this month

Police and paramedics are seen trying to save the two men at the gym on last week after the shooting - with pools of blood seen across the foyer

Police and paramedics are seen trying to save the two men at the gym on last week after the shooting – with pools of blood seen across the foyer

Zahed has been running the Commancheros by proxy with the gang’s leader Mark Buddle in hiding overseas.

He had been expected to be appointed president until the recent shooting, with Sydney chapter leader Mick Murray to take the reins until there is a better idea of his condition.Ā Ā Ā Ā 

After surviving several weeks, doctors are now deciding whether they will need to remove Zahed’s arm and leg.Ā 

He has completely lost sight in his right eye in last week’s attack, sources said, rendering him virtually blind as he already had reduced vision in his left eye.

‘He had an incident years ago that means vision in his left eye is only 20 to 30 per cent,’ a source said.Ā 

‘So with him likely being blind in his right eye now, he will be almost completely unable to see. They don’t know what will happen with his arm and legs, they were shredded by the bullets.

‘He also took three shots to the pelvis, so it’s a real wait and see situation at the minute.’Ā 

Omar was laid to rest by a group of heavily-tattooed mourners under the watchful eye of police at Rookwood Cemetery on Friday.

His death was the 12th underworld execution in Sydney in just 18 months.Ā 

Police had told the brothers as recently as May 5 that their lives were at risk but their warnings went unheeded.Ā 

Homicide Squad Commander Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said police are investigating possible motives for the assassination attempt, refusing to rule out the possibility of an inside job.

Tarek Zahed (pictured) survived after being shot 10 times by hitmen but could now lose his arm and leg

Tarek Zahed (pictured) survived after being shot 10 times by hitmen but could now lose his arm and legĀ 

‘We can’t discount an internal conflict,’ he told reporters last week.Ā 

‘There is opportunities for people to take their place and there’s a real power struggle within organised crime organisations.’

A second line of inquiry is whether there is any connection to the shooting death of Mahmoud ‘Brownie’ Ahmad almost three weeks ago.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb noted Tarek had a target on his back due to his senior role within underworld crime networks.

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‘He’s a senior member of the Comancheros… Australia’s largest criminal organisation,’ she said.

A police source earlier confirmed the hit on Tarek was considered the ‘biggest of the year’ in the criminal world.Ā 

‘Whoever has done this is game to go toe-to-toe with the Comancheros and nobody does that,’ they said.

Raptor Squad ā€“ a taskforce of specialist officers responsible for monitoring outlaw criminal groups in NSW ā€“ will receive a boost of 30 new officers, taking the team to 145, to help fight organised crime.

Tarek is in a serious but stable condition after being rushed to hospital to undergo life-saving surgery

Tarek is in a serious but stable condition after being rushed to hospital to undergo life-saving surgeryĀ 

The body of slain bikie associate Omar Zahed is carried from the back of a hearse to his grave at Rookwood Cemetery

The body of slain bikie associate Omar Zahed is carried from the back of a hearse to his grave at Rookwood Cemetery

Commissioner Webb said there will be a targeted, intelligence based operation to combat increasing crime rates.

‘We’re not targeting mums and dads,’ she said twice. ‘It’s a small number of people causing fear and we know who they are.’

She insisted police had ‘not lost control’ of the crime networks and vowed to stop at nothing to ensure the community continues to feel safe and protected.Ā 

Commissioner Webb noted Tarek was warned just a few days before the shooting about a legitimate threat to his life and was told to leave NSW as soon as possible.

‘He went about his usual business, his normal routine.’

Police sources claim the Comanchero are in bed with the Alameddine crime family and help to supply the network.

A white Audi station wagon was found engulfed in flames nearby, with police investigating its links to the shooting

A white Audi station wagon was found engulfed in flames nearby, with police investigating its links to the shooting

By extension, the Alameddines’ rivals the Hamzy family are considered enemies of the Comancheros.

But the Hamzy network is in a world of pain itself as top members have been ‘picked off like flies’ in recent months.

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Police confirmed there are two other crime scenes – one in Berala and another in Greenacre – which are subject to investigations.

Burnt out Audis were found at each location within minutes of the hit taking place.Ā 

In light of the spate of recent murders, NSW this week launched Taskforce Erebus to crackdown gang-related crime plaguing southwest Sydney.

The Balenciaga Bikie’s life of crime:

1995: Tarek Zahed was convicted of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, resisting arrest and assaulting police.

2001: Police charged Zahed after he used a dog to attack someone. He spent eight months in periodic detention.

2004:Ā Zahed spent five years behind bars after stomping on a man’s skull over a drug feud. The victim suffered brain damage.Ā 

2009: Zahed becomes a hang-around of the Comanchero bikie club.

2011: A wild running street battle saw multiple men stabbed andĀ Zahed’s associate shot with a nail gun before the Balenciaga Bikie firedĀ four bullets from a moving car hitting a man in the ear and shoulder.Ā Ā 

He was sentenced to eight years prison, with a non parole period of five years.Ā 

2012: Zahed became a fully patched member of the Comancheros.Ā Ā 

2020: Police are made aware that Zahed is now the national Sergeant At Arms of the outlaw motorcycle club.Ā Ā 

Zahed is convicted for dealing with the proceeds of crime after withdrawing thousands of dollars hidden in family member’s bank accounts.Ā 

2021: He is caught on camera at Barangaroo in Sydney punching a man.Ā Ā 

Zahed leaves Australia for Lebanon.Ā 

2022:Ā Arrested and chargedĀ with two counts of contravening serious crime prevention order

Shot at 10 times outside gym in AuburnĀ 

Source: NSW Supreme Court recordsĀ 

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