Balaclava-clad shooter allegedly targeted man in Central Coast home

A balaclava wearing gunman has shot a man in the hand and torso after storming into his Central Coast home in what police believe to be a targeted attack.

NSW Ambulance treated the 37-year-old man for “multiple injuries” following the shooting in Berkeley Vale, 60 kilometres north of Sydney, about 6am on Wednesday.

He was flown to hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Superintendent Chad Gillies said the man was allegedly shot in his home by the balaclava-wearing man in his late teens or early 20s.

“Investigators are working on the belief that it was a targeted attack,” Gillies said.

“This is a rare occurrence in this particular area, this type of violence, and I’m not prepared at this stage to elaborate whether this is linked to anything else. Obviously, that will be a major part of the investigation going forward.”

At least two shots were fired. Police are yet to establish what kind of gun was used.

Gillies said he was unable to elaborate on the alleged motivation for the attack, but said the victim was known to police. It is not yet known whether the incident was gang related.

Police have been talking to the victim’s partner, who was also in the home but was not physically injured, and are searching for a silver Great Wall Motors 4WD ute with roof racks and a roll bar seen in the area.

Last week, two mistaken identity shootings, on consecutive days, sparked a state government crackdown targeting people accused of orchestrating attacks linked to Sydney’s escalating gang conflicts.

University student Marco Tapia, 23, was shot in his bed in Glen Alpine, before business owner Joshua Macdonald, 40, was killed outside a Merrylands West home.

Premier Chris Minns said the tough new laws were needed to target the offshore kingpins and local middle men behind such attacks, and the teenagers often contracted to carry them out.

“Most shamefully of all, they’re using juveniles, children, to carry out these horrible crimes,” Minns said earlier this week.

“We can’t have a situation where innocent people are being shot in the street who have got nothing to do with organised crime.”

Under the proposed state government changes, teenagers accused of gangland shootings and firebombings would face trial as adults in the District and Supreme Courts, and potentially longer prison terms.

Nick Espie, general manager of National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services, said any time children spend behind bars increases their likelihood of reoffending and the proposed laws would perpetuate cycles of crime.

“There is no doubt that organised crime networks should be dismantled, but punishing children who have been exploited is not the answer,” Espie said.

“These laws fail to address the root cause of crime and instead punish children who have themselves been exploited.”

Minns noted criticism of the proposals but said the government “don’t have an alternative”.

Get alerts on breaking news as it happens. Sign up for our Breaking News Alert.