In June last year, police turned up on the doorstep of former Christian pastor Silas Issa and told him two people had been arrested after threats had allegedly been made on his life.
Though Mr Issa was in shock, someone immediately came to mind – a former member of his congregation called Pierre Asaad.
“I made that connection because of two reasons,” he told the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday. “It was earlier that same year that I ran into an old member of the congregation who affirmed to me that years ago Pierre had paid somebody $10,000 to take care of my life.
“The second reason is because I was told years ago to be careful because … Pierre sent somebody to kill me.”
Mr Issa, police now allege, was a target in a conspiracy to murder organised by Mr Assaad and his son John Assaad.
The pair are accused of conspiring to kill Mr Issa, who knew the family through a local Baptist church and had counselled the father’s wife during their separation.
They are also accused of conspiring to kill John Assaad’s former wife after their own split. Pierre Assaad is accused of hiring a hitman to carry out one of the killings.
Neither of the alleged planned murders took place and both targets appeared in court to give evidence on Monday.
The father and son are facing a committal hearing where a magistrate will decide if there is sufficient evidence to send them to trial.
Court documents show the pair are accused of entering into an agreement together between May 21 and June 14 to murder. John Assaad is also charged with possessing cartridge ammunition without being the holder of a firearms licence.
Under questioning from John Assaad’s lawyer Philip Dunn, QC, on Monday, Mr Issa told the court he did not go to police after he was told about the threats on his life early last year.
“I was considering it, and COVID happened,” he said.
He met the family in his role as the senior pastor at the International Baptist Church in Essendon, a position which he held between 1998 until 2013. The Assaad family were members of his congregation, he said, with Mr Issa even baptising John Assaad.
On June 18 last year, two police officers attended Mr Issa’s home. He gave a statement to police, after which he was told Pierre and John Assaad had been charged with conspiring to kill him.
Also giving evidence on Monday was the ex-wife of John Assaad. The names of both-ex-wives have been suppressed by the court.
“It was very hard,” the woman said, crying as she spoke of being lonely and at times homesick.
“It was not the most comfortable place living above a factory warehouse or shop?” asked Mr Dunn.
“It doesn’t matter where you live, it depends who you are living with, that’s the difference,” she responded.
They moved to a large property on the outskirts of the city. Between 2018 and 2019, the woman said the pair often fought.
Their troubled relationship culminated in an argument on March 11 last year in which the woman alleges John Assaad got angry after he found a shirt hadn’t been ironed. She claims he hit her over the head with a frying pan and plastic bucket before pushing her on the floor and throwing a chair at her back.
“Anything you could find around the house he was hurting me with,” she said.
She went to her job at a chemist where staff told her to go to police, she told the court. That night she reported the incident to police and she has not seen John Assaad since.
On June 18, she said she was shocked when police told her she needed to come to the station and make a statement. Afterwards they informed her that her husband had been charged.
“What did they tell you?” asked Mr Dunn.
“That I’m threatened to be killed by John Pierre and his dad,” she said. “That they paid someone to kill me.”
The hearing resumes on Tuesday.
The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.
Most Viewed in National
From our partners
Source: Read Full Article
