Robert Nikolovski could face a Supreme Court jury as early as February over allegations he orchestrated the killing of Wollongong underworld figure Darko Janceski almost four years ago.
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Lawyers for the Director of Public Prosecutions revealed on Friday at the conclusion of Nikolovski’s local court committal hearing that they would apply to join his case with that of Mr Janceski’s alleged shooter, Matthew Paul Wiggins, who is due to stand trial on February 15.
It is understood Nikolovski’s legal team will oppose the DPP application, given the short turn around between committal and trial.
The police case against the pair centres on allegations that Wiggins fatally shot Mr Janceski outside his parents’ house on the morning of April 4, 2012 at the behest of Nikolovski, who wanted revenge for the disappearance and suspected murder of his brother Goran at the hands of Mr Janceski in October 2011.
Both men were charged with murder offences in January 2013, however prosecutors withdrew Nikolovski’s solicit to murder charge against in September that year due to lack of evidence.
A year later Nikolovski was re-charged with the current charge – accessory before the fact to murder – on the basis of fresh evidence consisting of statements made by two convicted felons turned police informants, one of whom received a substantial discount on his sentence in exchange for his testimony.
Both men gave evidence at Nikolovski’s committal hearing on Thursday and Friday, claiming he admitted to them at different times his involvement in Mr Janceski’s murder.
The first man – ‘Witness Z’ – claimed Nikolovski made the confession to him while the pair were in prison together in 2013.
However, it was revealed during cross examination that Nikolovski was on bail on at least one occasion when the man claimed to have spoken to him in custody.
The second witness, identified as former Brothers for Life gang member and one-time Rebels OMCG nominee Fouad Ekermawi, initially forgot Mr Janceski’s identity when giving his evidence, despite the fact the pair had known each other for eight years prior to Mr Janceski’s death.
Mr Ekermawi told the court Nikolovski had disclosed to him his involvement in Mr Janceski’s death during a chance encounter between the pair at a mechnical shop in Wollongong sometime in 2012.
However, he said he didn’t pass the information on to police until December 2013.
At the conclusion of the committal hearing, defence lawyer Aaron Kernaghan said he did not oppose his client being committed to stand trial, but not before labeling the evidence of Mr Ekermawi and Witness Z “inherently unreliable” and at times “laughable”.
“Mr Ekermawi is the star witness in this case, yet he turned up yesterday [Thursday] and didn’t even know who the deceased was,” he said.
