NATION Driver guilty of fatal car rampage
A MAN has admitted accelerating into pedestrians, killing a grandfather, in a deadly preChristmas rampage in Melbourne last year.
Saeed Noori, 33, yesterday faced the Supreme Court where he pleaded guilty to one count of murder, 11 of recklessly causing serious injury and five of reckless conduct endangering life over the Flinders St onslaught on December 21.
Family of victim Antonios “Anton” Crocaris, 83, wiped away tears as they stared down their loved one’s killer as he said the word “guilty” to each charge.
His plea comes almost a year after he ploughed into pedestrians crossing at the busy Flinders St and Elizabeth St junction about 4.40pm.
Mr Crocaris, from Northcote, suffered critical head injuries and died in hospital nine days later.
Sixteen others were injured, including a four- year- old boy and teenager, 16.
Shocking CCTV footage shows Noori stop his vehicle at the red light along Flinders St and wait as the pedestrians started crossing, before accelerating at up to 52km/ h into the crowd.
A previous hearing heard how he had tried to hire two bigger SUVs on the day of the rampage in an attempt to cause maximum damage.
But when they only had sedans to offer him, he caught public transport to his mother’s home and took her Suzuki Vitara SUV.
Police also found images of vehicle- ramming terror attacks in London, Charlottesville in Virginia, and Barcelona on his computer.
Witnesses revealed hearing him yell “Allahu Akbar” as he drove through the pedestrians.
He later told a police officer: “It was deliberate. There were voices.”
Yesterday’s court hearing heard the incident was not being treated as a terror attack.
Noori, from Heidelberg West, had initially pleaded not guilty, with his defence counsel Dermot Dann QC indicating they would examine his fitness for trial. The Afghan- born Australian had been diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2014.
But last month, Mr Dann told the court they would no longer be looking at the mental impairment defence.
Noori was remanded to reappear in court for a three- day plea hearing, starting on February 12.