A young mother has revealed how her husband ended their phone call right before he was gunned down, ‘saving’ her from having to listen to the traumatising shooting.
Gilbert Shino, 39, was shot multiple times on August 17 as he was leaving The Harold hotel in Forest Lodge, inner west Sydney.
He died at the scene, while his friend, 31-year-old Maradona Yalda, was also shot but survived.
Pictures shared by his wife, Natasha Avakian, to Instagram on Saturday appear to show bullet holes in a fence near the pub.
On Sunday, NSW Police told Daily Mail that there is currently no update to the case, and investigations under Strike Force Westmoore – an operation targeting gang-related violence in Western Sydney – continue.
Mr Yalda had only returned to Australia four days before the murder, and, according to police sources, was ‘aware’ there was a contract on his head.
Mr Yalda is understood to have links with an Assyrian street gang called DLASTHR, along with former Comanchero bikie Andre Kallita, who has since left the club.
However, friends of Mr Shino have insisted he had no gang involvement, and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Mr Yalda.
Ms Avakian and Mr Shino attended the Australian Open tennis in January
Mr Shino was a devoted father of two daughters, Montana and Isla
Mr Shino and Ms Avakian shared two young daughters and suffered the miscarriage of a son.
Mr Shino was described as a hard-working tradie and family man. A GoFundMe in his memory has raised a massive $113,000.
Ms Avakian made an emotional pilgrimage to Forest Lodge on Saturday, where she shared a shot of liquor with a friend at The Harold in her late husband’s honour.
‘This one’s for you, Gib,’ she said.
On the night of his murder, Mr Shino had travelled from his Middleton Grange home to The Harold – a 45-minute drive – to watch a UFC match with Mr Yalda.
In a moving post which featured a picture of the possible bullet holes and a bunch of red roses, the young mother shared that she was on the phone with her husband in the seconds before he died.
‘I can’t believe I’m standing at the last place where you took your last breath,’ Ms Avakian wrote.
‘I can’t take it Gib, it kills me that this is how you left me.
‘You were on the phone to me when it happened, you hung up on me the second before. Even in your last moment, you saved me, you protected me, you made sure I wouldn’t hear anything.
Police raced to Forest Lodge in the aftermath of the shooting
Cops say a bullet only just missed patrons and a female staff member at the Harold
Mr Shino was an avid sports fan who enjoyed watching tennis and UFC
Ms Avakian had a drink in her husband’s honour in the suburb where he was murdered
‘I can’t imagine what was going on in your head, I pray you weren’t worried about me, because I know in my heart that’s the first thing you were thinking. I wish somehow I could have saved you.’
In a separate post, Ms Avakian also revealed she had been re-watching 2000s TV series The O.C. with her husband and that they were almost to the episode where one of the characters, Trey Atwood, is shot.
‘You wanted to get to the part where Trey gets shot. How ironic. I’ll never be able to watch that again,’ she said.
Ms Avakian also shared pictures of the couple’s daughters, Montana and Isla, visiting Mr Shino’s grave on father’s day.
They wore T-shirts that read, ‘Dad I used to be your angel, now you are mine’.
Ms Avakian said, ‘I wish people understood that time does not heal grief. It doesn’t get easier. It doesn’t fade. If anything, it gets heavier’.
It’s understood up to 15 gunshots rang out near The Harold when Mr Shino was killed around 6.35pm.
Innocent patrons and staff almost got caught up in the terrifying ordeal.
Mr Shino’s daughters visited his grave in matching T-shirts on Father’s Day
Ms Avakian’s gut-wrenching tribute featured red roses and a picture of a possible bullet hole
Mr Shino was gunned down in a hail of bullets on August 17 after watching UFC with a mate
Shino’s friend, Maradona Yalda, was also shot but survived his injuries
‘A bullet did hit a window and narrowly missed a female staff member… it’s a narrow street there, and also the pub nearby, obviously the bullets were flying in that direction. It would have been very, very frightening for them,’ Leichhardt Superintendent Alf Sergi told 2GB’s Ben Fordham.
‘We believe it’s a targeted attack, yes, based on one of the victim’s backgrounds with possible links to organised criminal networks.’
Police haven’t ruled out more than one gunman being involved.
‘At this stage it is not clear, so we’re working on the principle that’s this stage one gunman, but there’s possibly more,’ Superintendent Sergi said.
‘We’re looking for a vehicle, a dark-coloured vehicle… we’re really looking forward to the public giving us information, especially dashcam, to help put the pieces of the puzzle together.’
Local residents were reportedly told to stay inside their homes and wait for police to take statements.
Police said Mr Yalda and his friend had just left the pub when they were ambushed.
‘They were making their way to the car, which was parked about 100m up the road,’ Leichhardt Superintendent Alf Sergi told 2GB’s Ben Fordham on Monday.
‘As they got closer to the vehicle, they appear to have been ambushed. Shots fired.
‘The 39-year-old male, he suffered gunshot wounds and fell to the ground.
‘Police were nearby… they treated the man with the help of a doctor that was a resident nearby, and also paramedics, but unfortunately he succumbed to his wounds.’
Mr Yalda was chased by the gunman before shots were fired.
A man standing near Mr Shino could be heard on the phone shouting, ‘he’s my best friend’.
It is the 13th public shooting and the fourth fatal attack across Sydney in the last nine months.
Not all victims have had underworld links. Plumber John Versace was executed in his driveway in Condell Park in a case of mistaken identity.
Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
