31 May 2024 , 13:29
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The leader of the notorious Sydney gang Brothers 4 Life has been found guilty of orchestrating a drug syndicate from within one of Australia's most heavily guarded prisons.
A three-week trial concluded last week against Bassam Hamzy, aged 45, with the jurors delivering their verdict on Friday following a week of deliberation. He has been convicted of one count of commercial drug supply and one count of knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime, The Daily Telegraph reports.
Despite being housed in the high-risk inmate unit of Goulburn's Supermax jail, Hamzy still gave instructions from his cell. He oversaw the meth operation by using code words with fellow prisoners and drug runners.
Despite being housed in the high-risk inmate unit of Goulburn's Supermax jail, Hamzy still gave instructions from his cell (Wikimedia Commons)Hamzy has been in jail for over two decades for various offences, including the fatal shooting of a teenager outside a Sydney nightclub. He had previously been on trial for the meth syndicate in 2023, but the jury was unable to reach a verdict, leading to a retrial this month.
Prosecutors informed the court that 450 grams of methylamphetamine had been sold in Wollongong between October 2017 and February 2018 in transactions coordinated by Hamzy.
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Two men involved in those transactions, both members of Brothers 4 Life, later gave evidence against him in court, for their protection, they are known only as 'Witness A' and 'Witness I'. The court heard that both men were granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for their testimony.
Bassam Hamzy , 45, boss of the Brothers 4 Life gang has been found guilty of running drugs from jail (NSW Police)Hamzy's lawyers argued that at least one of the men had turned against him solely for personal gain, but the jury rejected this assertion. The court learned that Hamzy received £14,000 from the drug deals.
He is currently serving sentences for unrelated offences until at least 2035 and will return to court in August for sentencing on the drug charges.