Terror plot gun blunder

THE man who allegedly supplied the gun used to kill NSW police employee Curtis Cheng originally obtained the “wrong” weapon, a Sydney court has heard.

Police surveillance material played at a committal hearing in the Downing Centre Local Court yesterday allegedly shows the terror plotters encountered a major glitch in their plan just hours before Mr Cheng was shot dead on the afternoon of October 2, 2015.

Aerial police footage allegedly shows Talal Alameddine, 24, arranging to supply the murder weapon to fellow accused terror plotter Raban Alou, 19, at a rendezvous near Parramatta, about 1.30pm on October 2.

In audio from Alou’s car that was played to the court, Alou can be heard saying, “What did you bring?” and Alameddine replying, “Well, I brought the 30 cal, bro ... you wanted the big one”. A displeasedAlou can be heard saying, “S.... bro”. Crown prosecutor Paul McGuire SC said Alameddine had provided “a firearm that turns out to be not the firearm that’s requested due to the wrong type or the wrong size”.

Surveillance footage shows Alameddine and Alou then driving to Merrylands, where Alameddine lived, allegedly to obtain the right weapon. The men were followed by a second car carrying another accused terror plotter, Mustafa Dirani.

Mr McGuire said the revolver used to kill Mr Cheng was a .38 calibre Smith & Wesson, which is relatively small and easily concealed compared with the .30 calibre gun that was originally supplied.

Alameddine, Alou and Dirani are all accused of supplying the gun used by Farhad Jabar, 15, to kill Mr Cheng outside Parramatta police HQ.