OMEN
05-12-2006, 12:10 AM
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Scene ... Police recover a gun.
A MAN believed to be Sydney bikie murder suspect Russell Oldham last night waded into the knee-deep water at Balmoral beach and shot himself in the head.
The middle-aged man was spotted by horrified evening walkers as he stood in the shallows, just metres from the shoreline, pointed a handgun at his temple and fired.
The witnesses told police the man took off his shoes before wading in and firing a single round about 7.45pm (AEST).
Detectives early today were trying to formally identify the man as Oldham, the prime suspect in last month's murder in an east Sydney street of Bandidos bikie chief Rodney Monk.
A crime scene was established on the beach last night, with forensics experts and water police scouring the area for clues.
Police recovered a handgun on the shoreline three hours after the shooting.
The suicide comes almost three weeks after Monk was gunned down outside a restaurant during a night out with his girlfriend and three others, including Oldham.
Monk, 31, was president of the Bandidios city chapter and brother of a Sydney police officer. He contrasted his bikie lifestyle with mixing in high society.
He attended parties with the likes of Danish Crown Princess Mary's Sydney socialite bridesmaid Amber Petty and lived with his girlfriend in Tamarama.
Oldham has been the centre of a manhunt since the shooting, with senior police appealing for him to surrender amid fears of a retribution attack.
Police will ballistically test the gun used, for a possible match to the weapon used to kill Monk.
A Balmoral resident told The Daily Telegraph he heard one shot shortly before 8pm.
"It was a real loud bang," the man said. "It really startled us.
"About 20 minutes later the sirens started.
"It's real strange that something like this should happen around here because it's such a quiet area.
"I thought it must have been kids with firecrackers."
The body was dragged from the water and laid about 5m from the water's edge before it was removed just before 10pm.
Oldham's involvement in the murder of Monk marked the final transformation of a would-be-doctor turned bikie.
He served a prison term for the manslaughter of two men before devoting his time to raising money for charity, including an effort to help a young, disabled girl.
Oldham, who was released from jail in 2004, boarded at the exclusive St John's College.
He stood out for his intelligence - which won him a place in medicine - and his cricket talent
http://network.news.com.au/images/h14_dailytelegraph.gif
Scene ... Police recover a gun.
A MAN believed to be Sydney bikie murder suspect Russell Oldham last night waded into the knee-deep water at Balmoral beach and shot himself in the head.
The middle-aged man was spotted by horrified evening walkers as he stood in the shallows, just metres from the shoreline, pointed a handgun at his temple and fired.
The witnesses told police the man took off his shoes before wading in and firing a single round about 7.45pm (AEST).
Detectives early today were trying to formally identify the man as Oldham, the prime suspect in last month's murder in an east Sydney street of Bandidos bikie chief Rodney Monk.
A crime scene was established on the beach last night, with forensics experts and water police scouring the area for clues.
Police recovered a handgun on the shoreline three hours after the shooting.
The suicide comes almost three weeks after Monk was gunned down outside a restaurant during a night out with his girlfriend and three others, including Oldham.
Monk, 31, was president of the Bandidios city chapter and brother of a Sydney police officer. He contrasted his bikie lifestyle with mixing in high society.
He attended parties with the likes of Danish Crown Princess Mary's Sydney socialite bridesmaid Amber Petty and lived with his girlfriend in Tamarama.
Oldham has been the centre of a manhunt since the shooting, with senior police appealing for him to surrender amid fears of a retribution attack.
Police will ballistically test the gun used, for a possible match to the weapon used to kill Monk.
A Balmoral resident told The Daily Telegraph he heard one shot shortly before 8pm.
"It was a real loud bang," the man said. "It really startled us.
"About 20 minutes later the sirens started.
"It's real strange that something like this should happen around here because it's such a quiet area.
"I thought it must have been kids with firecrackers."
The body was dragged from the water and laid about 5m from the water's edge before it was removed just before 10pm.
Oldham's involvement in the murder of Monk marked the final transformation of a would-be-doctor turned bikie.
He served a prison term for the manslaughter of two men before devoting his time to raising money for charity, including an effort to help a young, disabled girl.
Oldham, who was released from jail in 2004, boarded at the exclusive St John's College.
He stood out for his intelligence - which won him a place in medicine - and his cricket talent
http://network.news.com.au/images/h14_dailytelegraph.gif