It was about an hour before the scheduled start of the funeral of \u201cSuna\u201d, as he was known to family and friends, when those closest to him \u2013 and most worried about his reputation \u2013 realised they had a problem.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/4ab80bc0c85738846e0e947dc8576b38280c63f1.jpeg\")
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A motorcycle escort formed part of the elaborate funeral procession for murdered underworld figure Sam Abdulrahim.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n
The 32-year-old underworld figure-turned-boxer had been laid out in a basic wooden coffin for his memorial service inside the Alawi Islamic Association of Victoria Centre in Epping.<\/p>\n
Normally, the style of coffin would not be that important \u2013 in the Islamic tradition, the dearly departed are ultimately buried wrapped only in a shroud.<\/p>\n
But in life, appearances really mattered to Abdulrahim \u2013 he was all about flash cars, flash jewellery, flash women and big boasts, all part of his quest for a fearsome reputation inside in the ring and out on the streets.<\/p>\n
It was becoming obvious to those who cared the most deeply for him that the plain box just would not do.<\/p>\n
The problem? There was a press pack already swarming outside the hall, and mourners were beginning to arrive.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just didn\u2019t look right. It didn\u2019t look right enough for Suna,\u201d an underworld source said. \u201cThey were worried about what it would say [when it was seen] in the media.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Emotional](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/0fb3f8b9e85774f2b74ee35ede19611a6e93217f.jpeg\")
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Emotional scenes at the funeral. Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n
Abdulrahim had become infamous, in part for his flamboyant ways but mostly because of what had been done to him rather than what he had done in the underworld.<\/p>\n
This was a man who had fought his way into a cruiserweight title, a former Mongol bikie who\u2019d made enough enemies to warrant a $1 million contract on his head. And yet, he would still taunt them.<\/p>\n
In just a few short years, he\u2019d put off so many dangerous players in Melbourne\u2019s underworld that he was bashed, bricked, firebombed<\/a>, and shot at in no fewer than 18 separate attacks before his death. That included surviving eight gunshot wounds at a funeral (outside the place he was to be buried that day) in 2022 and avoiding a hail of 17 bullets just months before his murder.<\/p>\n Loading<\/p>\n His list of enemies was a roll call of the top echelon of Melbourne\u2019s underworld \u2013 the Mongols and Comanchero bikie clubs, underworld killers Gavin \u201cCapable\u201d Preston<\/a> and Nabil Maghnie<\/a>, and the suspected architect of his murder, tobacco kingpin Kazem Hamad<\/a>.<\/p>\n Back at the funeral, a call was made to Simon \u201cSpeedy\u201d Khoury, a family friend and whose undertaker business had been burying loved ones in Melbourne\u2019s northern suburbs with a special touch for years.<\/p>\n Speedy, a long-time associate of convicted drug trafficker Tony Mokbel<\/a>, also helped make the arrangements to lay to rest underworld players such as the Notorious Crime Family lieutenant Meshilin Marrogi<\/a>, sister of George Marrogi<\/a>, and Tony\u2019s brother Milad Mokbel<\/a>. (Men wearing the funeral business\u2019 logo would turn up to support Tony and shake his hand<\/a> at his bail hearing earlier this year.)<\/p>\n Abdulrahim\u2019s message to enemies, posted online.Credit: Instagram<\/p>\n The problem was put to Speedy, and his solution would change the entire perception of Abdulrahim\u2019s funeral.<\/p>\n Soon after, a hearse pulled into the parking lot of the Islamic centre, holding a shiny golden coffin in the back.<\/p>\n Loading<\/p>\n The press pack was confused. This was the second hearse and the second coffin to arrive within an hour.<\/p>\n An honour guard of Abdulrahim\u2019s associates gathered at the hearse, lifting the (empty) gold coffin and taking it into the centre.<\/p>\n The media had no idea it was all for show.<\/p>\n Inside, Abdulrahim\u2019s 90-kilogram body was gently transferred from the wooden to the flash casket.<\/p>\n Only a handful of people knew that day that Abdulrahim arrived in a plain box but went out in a golden vessel.<\/p>\n The funeral home did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Not since gangland boss Carl Williams was buried in a $30,000 14-carat gold plated casket<\/a> in 2010 has anyone in the underworld been so ostentatious in death.<\/p>\n There were scenes of high emotion as the coffin, draped in a green banner, was carried to the hearse and then driven to Northern Memorial Park where Abdulrahim\u2019s body was lifted out and placed reverently in the ground.<\/p>\n Mourners surround Sam Abdulrahim\u2019s casket at the Alawi Islamic Association in Epping.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n That was six months ago this week.<\/p>\n Abdulrahim\u2019s murder is yet to be solved. The four-man hit team, and the overseas gangland bosses<\/a> thought to have ordered his murder, have never been arrested or charged.<\/p>\n![\"Abdulrahim\u2019s](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/01a4d576684a32bba6853c3b984d08117a0a4a04.jpeg\")
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