Innocent tradie’s heroic final act revealed after he was shot dead during a suspected gangland bungle – as his heartbroken family speaks out
An innocent tradesman, Joshua MacDonald, 40, was shot dead in what police believe was a case of mistaken identity in Merrylands West, western Sydney. His family say he died shielding his best friend and the friend's two young daughters from gunfire, with relatives calling for greater police protection after the killing, which they describe as a "cold-blooded murder".
MacDonald, an electrical contractor with no links to organised crime, was walking to a house on Bruce Street on Wednesday afternoon when gunmen in a stolen Audi opened fire, killing him instantly; the property's occupants are reportedly known to police for organised crime activity. His aunt, Darlene Norton, said his best friend Nick Brown told her MacDonald leapt in front of him and his daughters as they arrived home from school. The shooting followed the fatal shooting of Marco Tapia, 23, in his Glen Alpine bedroom the previous day, also believed to be a case of mistaken identity; no arrests have been made in either case, and the family has criticised NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley and other officials, who insist the situation is "under control".
- Tradesman Joshua MacDonald, 40, shot dead in Sydney gangland mix-up
- Family say he shielded best friend's two young daughters from gunfire
- No arrests yet; follows similar mistaken-identity killing of Marco Tapia
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Joshua MacDonald, a 40-year-old electrical contractor from western Sydney, was shot dead in Merrylands West after gunmen in a stolen car opened fire, apparently at the wrong target. Police believe the intended targets were people at the property he was walking towards, who are reportedly known to them through links to organised crime, but MacDonald himself had no such connections.
His family say he was killed while shielding his best friend and the friend's two young daughters from the gunfire, and they have publicly demanded stronger police protection for their community. The shooting came a day after another suspected case of mistaken identity, the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Marco Tapia in his own bedroom in Glen Alpine, fuelling concern about a wider pattern of gang-related violence spilling over onto uninvolved bystanders.
No arrests have been made in either killing. The cases have put pressure on NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley and other officials, who have said the situation is under control, while grieving relatives argue that innocent residents are being put at risk.