An Illawarra man who survived being shot in the head at point blank range has named his former friend as the gunman.
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The victim, who now sports scars along his right jawline (where the bullet entered) and at the base of his head (where it exited), told Wollongong District Court on Tuesday the man who shot him in the driveway of a Unanderra house in the early hours of April 8 last year was his one-time friend Jason Speelman.
Prosecutors alleged Speelman went to the house that night intending to target his friend-turned-love rival, Robert Fitzgerald, who was dating Speelman’s ex-wife.
Giving evidence on day one of Speelman’s attempted murder trial, the victim said Mr Fitzgerald, nicknamed ‘Builder’, had received threatening phone calls from Speelman in the hours before the shooting, including one around 8pm.
“He was shaking after that call,” the man said.
“He said Jason was coming around to get him”.
The man said he and another of Mr Fitzgerald’s friends, Steve Gallea, decided to stay with Mr Fitzgerald.
He said during the evening he saw two cars he recognised as being connected to Speelman go past the house on three occasions.
After the third driveby, the trio began walking up the street. The victim led the way, a distance ahead of Mr Fitzgerald and Mr Gallea.
The man said he spotted Speelman walking towards him and allegedly saw him pull something from the front of his pants.
He said he immediately suspected a gun and turned and ran, yelling at Mr Fitzgerald “he’s coming, he’s got something”.
Mr Fitzgerald and Mr Gallea ran back to the house and locked themselves inside the garage. The victim ran down the driveway and crouched on stairs next to the house.
“I heard Jason yell ‘Builder, get out here you dog’…he was halfway up the driveway.
“I turned my head to look…I saw Jason point the gun, he was pointing it at my head…and ‘bang’, he pulled the trigger.”
When asked the distance between the gun and his face, the man held his thumb and forefinger about 6cm apart.
It is alleged Speelman fired two more shots before fleeing.
Mr Fitzgerald wrapped the victim’s head in a jumper to stem the bleeding.
The court heard he told police and paramedics on the scene that Speelman was the shooter.
The judge-alone trial continues on Wednesday.
