OFF THE WIRE
1%er News:
13 men at committal for airport brawl
: bigpondnews.com
Australia - On a Sunday afternoon some 16 months ago, Anthony Zervas's was bashed to death at Sydney Airport, beaten with a steel bollard and stabbed with a pair of scissors.
His gruesome death was witnessed by scores of onlookers, and sparked intense community interest when it emerged the murder was the result of a brawl between warring bikie gangs.
The 29-year-old victim's brother is senior Hells Angel Peter Zervas.
He has been charged with riot and affray, and is one of 13 men who will next week face committal proceedings at a Sydney court over the events of March 22, 2009, at Sydney's domestic terminal.
Mahmoud Hawi, Frank La Rosa, Farres Abounader, Usama Potrus, Maher Aouli, Christian Menzies, Pomare Pirini, Zoran Kisacanin, Tiago Costa and Ismail Eken (aka Erden) have been charged with Mr Zervas's murder and riot, with each allegedly linked to the Comanchero motorcycle gang.
Eight of those men are also charged with affray.
In addition, two other men - David Padovan and Musa (Philip) Ovalle - are charged with riot and affray.
Beginning on Tuesday, Magistrate John Favretto will conduct a committal hearing for the men, which is expected to last from eight to 12 weeks and call on more than 60 witnesses.
A courtroom in the Sydney West Trial courts complex at Parramatta has been set aside for the hearing, which is expected to start each day at 10am (AEST).