A man accused of being complicit in an underworld figure’s murder has been bailed as it could take two years to get to trial, with his brother awaiting extradition from Greece
Fabio Peronne, 26, was in July charged with murder and attempted murder over the 2023 broad daylight shooting of Robert Issa, 27 and his associate in a shopping centre car park.
Supreme Court Justice Michael Croucher on Wednesday said Mr Issa was killed by a “hail of gunshots” from close range by several gunmen in Craigieburn.
Mr Issa and Eric Catanese had just finished a meeting at the Coffee Club with an associate.
He was sitting inside a white Mercedes inside the car park, next to Mr Catanese, when a number of shots were fired into the car.
The judge said several men, dressed in black, ran to the passenger side door and fired nine shots through that window and another six through the back window.
“Within 12 seconds, the men returned to the Range Rover and sped away,” he said.
“Mr Issa was killed and Mr Catanese survived.”
The judge alleged Mr Issa sent a photo of himself to one of the accused men “with a lewd image drawn in red” in the weeks before he was killed.
Peronne is not accused of being a gunman or Range Rover getaway driver, Justice Croucher noted, and is accused of murder and attempted murder by complicity.
The prosecution’s case against Peronne is circumstantial, using phone, encrypted device, bank records, CCTV and GPS data to link him to the offending, he said.
It’s alleged Peronne sourced and stored a getaway car, and conducted reconnaissance the night before and morning of the murder, including surveilling Mr Issa’s property.
Justice Croucher said Peronne is further accused of being in an MG near the Craigieburn shopping centre when the killing occurred, and helping co-accused avoid law detection.
Four others have been charged with murder and attempted murder, while another co-accused – Peronne’s brother Christopher – has been arrested in Greece and is awaiting extradition.
While the case is still in the magistrates court stream, Justice Croucher said there would be “substantial delay in the matter coming to trial” as he approved Peronne’s release on bail.
A trial may not take place until mid-2027 due to delays in extraditing the co-accused from Greece and finding a court room large enough for five or six offenders, he said.
The judge said that $950,000 provided as bail surety by Peronne’s cousin was “a substantial amount of money” and found Peronne had a good history of complying with bail.
Peronne must abide by several conditions, including being at his home between 10pm and 5am each night, and that he cannot come within 500 metres of Mr Catanese or his home.
He must not speak to any co-accused, including his two brothers, and cannot leave Victoria. In August, Victoria Police announced a $1 million reward and potential indemnity from prosecution for more information on Mr Issa’s killing.
Police allege Mr Issa had connections to several organised crime groups.
