Former Kiwis and NRL Premiership winner Matt Utai has undergone surgery and is expected to make a recovery after a drive-by shooting in Sydney’s southwest yesterday.
Sky News Australia reported that New South Wales police believe the shooting was targeted but are still investigating if the former NRL star was the intended victim.
The Sydney Morning Herald said emergency services were called to Macquarie St in Greenacre around 6am yesterday, where Utai, 44, was discovered with gunshot wounds to his chest and leg.
He was rushed to hospital in a serious condition.
Police say shots were fired from an SUV that drove past the home, striking Utai at least twice.
A search is now underway for the driver and gunman.
Utai was born in Auckland and played 167 NRL games. He was also part of the Canterbury Bulldogs’ 2004 NRL Premiership-winning side.
Utai also played four tests for the Kiwis and three for Samoa.
New South Wales police said they were called to a house on Macquarie St, Greenacre, around 6am yesterday after reports of a shooting.
“Officers attached to Bankstown Police Area Command were told a man had been shot outside a home by the occupants of an SUV before it drove away.
”The man, aged 44, was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics for multiple gunshot wounds before being taken to hospital in a serious condition."
Police said they were then called to an address 2.5km away after reports of a car fire, and found an SUV well alight.
“The fire was extinguished by Fire and Rescue NSW and the car was seized for forensic examination,” police said.
Crime scenes were established at both locations and police were treating the incidents as linked.
The former NRL winger is not believed to be the intended target of the shooting, according to Australian news outlets.
Superintendent Rodney Hart said he couldn’t confirm who the victim was but yesterday said he required surgery.
“The man was shot in the leg and upper shoulder chest area. He was treated at the scene by ambulance, where he was stablised, and he was taken to hospital, where he is currently in a serious but stable condition and is currently in surgery.”
Hart said police believed the attack was targeted and there was no ongoing threat to the community.
They were currently looking for two males, a gunman and a driver, who were driving the vehicle.
“Part of our investigation currently at the moment is to identify whether or not that vehicle is the vehicle that was linked to this crime,” Hart said.
“We believe at this point in time that it’s definitely a targeted attack.
”There is no ongoing threat to the community but I ask again, we need help from the community if anybody has seen anything, anybody has any footage, if they can please make contact with police."
Two of Utai’s former teammates at the West Tigers, Beau Ryan and Aaron Woods, said they are still trying to process the incident, on their breakfast radio show on Sydney’s Triple M.
“We are praying for Matt and his family that hopefully he makes a recovery,” Ryan said.
“It is tough times. Thoughts and prayers to everyone.”
Woods said he was rocked by the incident.
“Fingers crossed for a quick recovery,” Woods said.
“I spent a lot of time with Matty.
”I still talk to him a lot to this day ... so rocked a little bit. Hopefully a speedy recovery."
Utai made his NRL debut in the 2002 season. He scored 13 tries in 21 appearances and won the Rookie of the Year award.
In 2004, he helped the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs win the NRL Premiership, scoring two tries in the grand final in a 16-13 win over the Sydney Roosters.
He would finish up with the Bulldogs in 2009 with 127 appearances.
Utai then spent three seasons at the Wests Tigers, where he played a further 40 games.