A teenage killer present when a loved family man was gunned down later turned up to comfort his victim’s wife and deny involvement, a court has been told.
Abdurhman Jemal, 33, was shot dead outside a shopping strip in the Melbourne suburb of Glenroy about 4.30am on March 29, 2024.
His killers, father and son duo Luke James Picking, 42, and Brodi Picking, 20, returned before the Victorian Supreme Court on Monday for a pre-sentence hearing.
Following a trial late last year, Luke Picking was found guilty of Mr Jemal’s murder while Brodi Picking was acquitted of murder but found guilty of manslaughter.
The court was told two weeks before the fatal shooting, Brodi Picking, who had just turned 18, alleged Mr Jamal had stolen his wallet at a mutual friend’s home.
The two men clashed during a chance meeting at a Bunnings Warehouse about 8.40pm on March 28 before going their separate ways.
Six hours later Luke Picking was captured on CCTV meeting up with his son and pulling a loaded shotgun out of the bonnet of his car.
An hour later at 3.30am, Crown prosecutor Patrick Bourke KC said the pair went “looking for Jemal” and found him outside the Justin Ave shops.
“You want to be a sick c–t, hey,” Luke Picking shouted from the car before Mr Jamal was shot in the neck and died.
At trial, Luke Picking maintained he never intended to kill anyone and Brodi Picking maintained he did not know the firearm was loaded.
Brodi Picking’s barrister, Rishi Nathwani KC, told the court that consistent with the jury’s verdict, his client was involved in an “agreement with a loaded firearm to scare” Mr Jamal.
But, he said, the evidence was clear that Luke Picking was already driving around with the gun for unrelated reasons, and did not know about the Bunnings altercation until he’d met up with his son.
“Had his father not brought a gun … The plan would never have been to scare with a loaded gun,” he said.
Mr Nathwani urged the court to take into account his client’s disadvantaged background in sentencing.
Mr Bourke said it was significant that hours had elapsed between the Bunnings confrontation and Mr Jamal’s shooting, arguing it “cannot be said to be an impulsive decision”.
He also told the court a week after the death, Brodi Picking had shown up at Mr Jamal’s widow’s home to deny involvement.
In victim impact statements read to the court, Mr Jamal was remembered by members of his family as loving, protective and deeply devoted to his family.
His sister told the court Mr Jamal was known in their community for his “kindness and willingness to help those in need” as a mentor.
“His greatest dream was to work hard, support our parents and reunite our family here in Australia,” she said.
His brother told the court the death had significantly impacted their family.
“He was hopeful for the future, he had hope for a better future and plans and dreams … they were taken away by selfish actions outside of his control,” Mr Jamal’s brother said.
“I live with the weight of his absence every single day.”
Luke Picking, who told the court he now wishes to represent himself and is planning to appeal the verdict, was unprepared for the plea hearing and will return to court in early September.