Police have seized five guns including an AK-47 assault rifle and arrested a man at two properties in Glenroy following a tobacco shop arson and shots being fired into a home in the same suburb.
Officers believe this violence to be part of a wider trend of criminal syndicates looking to fill the vacuum left in the tobacco black market following the arrest of Kazem Hamad, one of the key players in the ongoing tobacco wars engulfing Victoria.
The most recent incidents began at 10pm on Tuesday in Belair Avenue, Glenroy. Two men, one armed with a shotgun, entered a tobacco store on Belair Avenue and tried to set it on fire with petrol.
The two staff members present weren’t injured and managed to extinguish the flames as the offenders fled in a white Mercedes-Benz sedan.
Four hours later, a white Toyota RAV4 damaged another vehicle on Lewis Street. Shots were then fired from the nearby residence about 2.30am, damaging a neighbouring property.
Police believe the tobacco store incident and the shooting are linked and targeted actions.
Officers searched two properties in Glenroy on Wednesday morning, arresting a 30-year-old man and seizing five firearms, including an AK-47. No charges have been laid.
“A number of significant arrests recently made in Victoria, interstate and offshore have had a substantial impact on the operations of an alleged criminal enterprise here in Victoria,” said Detective Inspector Graham Banks of the gang crime squad.
“What we’re seeing now is an escalation of violent offending by various organised crime syndicates vying for control of the illicit tobacco market.”
Hamad was arrested in Iraq in January on behalf of Australian law enforcement authorities.
This month marks three years since the firebombings of tobacco stores began in Victoria. There have since been more than 100 incidents, including an arson at a house in January 2025 in which an innocent woman was killed.
Banks said police had made more than 200 arrests since the violence began.
“We know these groups are reckless when it comes to seeking control over illicit tobacco profits, and they do not care for the safety of the broader community,” Banks said.
“We know people are concerned given these tobacco stores are still being set alight, but what I would say is we do know the people who are involved, and we will continue working with our partner agencies to actively target those syndicates. Victoria Police will do everything we can to hold them accountable.”
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