The horror of the terrifying incident involving a car hitting pedestrians in Melbourne as it unfolded
The driver accused of carrying out the sickening Bourke Street car attack last Friday allegedly began his rampage by stabbing his brother for being gay.
But his brother Angelo's ex-boyfriend has told news.com.au Dimitrious 'Jimmy' Gargasoulas had gay tendencies himself.
Shaun Schembri, 29, said he once accidentally kissed Gargasoulas ina club - thinking he was Angelo - and the accused killer kissed him back.
James 'Jimmy' Gargasoulas aka Dimitrious Gargasoulas started the rampage by stabbbing his brother because he was gay . Photo / Facebook
"One night when we were out at a venue ... I leaned over to kiss Angelo, not realising it was Jimmy, and kissed Jimmy," said Mr Schembri, a sales manager. "He wanted it to go further, he wanted me to come home with him. I believe there was something there, maybe he was in the closet."
Gargasoulas - who allegedly deliberately mowed down pedestrians in Melbourne's crowded CBD, killing five and injuring 15 - shared quasi-religious and homophobic posts on Facebook in the lead-up to the attack.
"It is stated in my 10 commandments no homosexual shall rule the earth," he wrote in one bizarre post.
"I am actually Greek Islamic Kurdish ANGEL OF CULT," he wrote in another, also calling himself God "in a human bodily form" and ranting about the Illuminati, the police and Scientology.
His mother Emily told 7 News that before the carnage, Gargasoulas fought with Angelo over his sexuality at her public housing apartment in Windsor and allegedly stabbed him in the face.
"Jimmy keeps saying to me, I'm going to kill all gays and poofters and lesbians," she said.
His half-brother George's ex, Alisha Bland, said told news.com.au this week that Gargasoulas was "very homophobic".
Mr Schembri, who used to stay with Angelo at his mother's apartment when he was 20, said Gargasoulas "was always stealing from bottle shops and supermarkets" and would stand over his mother demanding money on pension day.
"He had no respect for authority," said Mr Schrembi.
He said he met Angelo at a nightclub when the younger Gargasoulas brother was completing his VCE at Swinburne Secondary College. The "quiet", anti-drugs teenager, now in his 20s, also briefly worked at fashion accessories store Oroton.
Mr Schembri added: "I work in Bourke Street Mall and I have to look at the flowers, and the silence is deafening ... It makes my skin crawl."
Ten-year-old victim Thalia Hakin will be laid to rest in a private funeral today. She was one of five killed during the rampage, with three-month-old Zachary Bryant becoming the first to be farewelled at a service yesterday.
Zachary's parents Matthew and Nawwar described him as a beautiful, loving, happy and perfect little baby. "He leaves us with the best three months and 14 days of wonderful memories spent in this world," they said.
Photo / News Limited
The Bryants' two-year-old daughter Zara was also injured but is in a stable condition.
Thalia Hakin's mother Nathalie and nine-year-old sister Maggie most likely won't be able to attend her funeral in St Kilda East as they also remain in hospital.
Heartbroken father Tony Hakin has been running from one hospital to another to see the pair while dealing with the loss of his daughter, Rabbi Yehoshua Smukler said.
Matthew Si, 33, Sydneysider Jess Mudie, 22, and an unnamed Japanese national, 25, also died in the attack.
More than one million dollars has so far been raised for victims through various crowd-funding sites.
It's understood Mr Si's family will be holding a private funeral. Eighteen people remain in hospital including two in a critical condition.
Gargasoulas was charged with five counts of murder on Monday and is likely to face more charges as police continue their investigation. The accused man was on bail at the time of the offences.
Zara and Zachary Bryant. Zachary was killed and Zara is in a critical condition in the RCH after being hit. Photo / Facebook
Victoria Police have come under fire for failing to stop Gargasoulas despite trying to do so for up to 16 hours before the Bourke Street attack, following the alleged early morning stabbing.
It emerged today that police were directed in an email not to shoot at or rush to intercept stolen or suspect cars months before Friday's incident.
The Victorian government is in the midst of reviewing its bail laws, announcing on Monday that bail justices - who are unqualified volunteers - would be scrapped for serious matters and a new night court set up with on-call magistrates to deal with bail applications.
Senator Derryn Hinch on Tuesday called for the Victorian Premier, "dithering Dan" Andrews, to recall parliament immediately to change the law and give senior police the power to remand offenders, since they are "familiar with the offenders they are dealing with".
Parliament is due back on February 7.
Thousands attended a vigil for the victims at Federation Square on Monday. Victorians have also increased inquiries about learning first aid, with St John Ambulance saying calls about their courses had gone up 20 per cent following the attack.
Gargasoulas' case is due to return to court on August 1 for a special mention.
