After reportedly shooting an Australian underworld figure and his associate “under the direction of an individual abroad,” two Samoan nationals were detained in Vietnam.
The two guys who were detained on Tuesday were named Steve Tafia and Vaa Vaa by Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security.
They are charged with shooting and killing Sydney mobster Lorenzo Lemalu and wounding Sam Sauni, a 27-year-old associate of the Coconut Cartel from southwest Sydney.
Less than 72 hours after Lemalu’s passing, on Monday, Tafia and Vaa were located close to the Vietnam-Cambodia border.
The two allegedly flew into Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City on May 14 and “studied the modus operandi” of their targets before shooting them on May 21, according to Vietnamese authorities.
The males ‘originally admitted to all their criminal deeds,’ according to the authorities.
Lemalu, a 24-year-old former member of the Alameddine criminal family, is a top commander of the infamous Coconut Cartel.
On Thursday night, he was shot and attacked outside a restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City.
After reportedly shooting and killing an Australian gang leader on Thursday night, Steve Tafia and Vaa Vaa (above) were taken into custody on Monday close to the Vietnam-Cambodia border.
On May 14, Tafia (above) and Vaa allegedly shot the gang leader and his associate “under the direction of an individual abroad” after arriving in Ho Chi Minh City.
Before Lemalu was shot at close range in front of stunned diners, CCTV showed him standing with a group on a sidewalk along a busy dining strip.
Sam Sauni, a 27-year-old southwest Sydney resident and fellow Coconut Cartel accomplice, was gravely injured but made it out alive.
Two suspects, who are thought to be Samoan nationals, were taken into custody, according to a statement released by the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security on Tuesday. “At this time, law enforcement agencies are concentrating on investigating, verifying, and strictly handling the individuals involved in accordance with the law,” the statement told ABC News.
It is acknowledged that no charges have been brought as of yet.
The Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security has been contacted by Daily Mail for additional comment.
The Australian Federal Police are reportedly working to confirm the arrests.
Both NSW Police and AFP declined to comment on the arrests or the inquiry.
On Thursday night, Lorenzo Lemalu, a prominent member of the infamous Coconut Cartel, was shot and killed outside a restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City.
In relation to his death, two men have been detained in Vietnam.
Following Lemalu’s death, Vietnamese police opened an inquiry and on Saturday published pictures of two men they initially said were citizens of Australia.
According to the police alert, the two got out of a taxi outside a supermarket in Tay Ninh, a town close to the Cambodian border, after leaving Ho Chi Minh City.
It is presently unknown if the two suspects who were arrested on Monday are the same ones that were previously photographed by the police.
The moment Lemalu was shot and killed by a hooded gunman in a crowded dining area was captured on camera and released online.
Lemalu, who was injured, rushed into a nearby eatery and passed out.
Another sufferer fell onto the road but was able to crawl onto the sidewalk as startled diners fled for safety.
After that, a spectator pulled him into a restaurant so he could obtain assistance.
Inside a restaurant, another man was observed crouching next to Lemalu’s injured body and attempting to administer first aid while conversing with employees.
Sam Sauni, a fellow member of the Coconut Cartel, was gravely hurt but lived.
Lorenzo Lemalu was shot several times and was not able to come back to life.
Another picture depicts paramedics frantically trying to bring Lemalu back to life.
Lemalu has the name of Proper 60, a gang from western Sydney connected to the Alameddines under Ali Younes, also known as Ay Huncho, tattooed on his stomach.
After leaving Australia four years ago, Lemalu reportedly had a falling out with the Alameddines and started leading the Coconut Cartel’s operations from South-East Asia.
The Alameddines and the Coconut Cartel, a splinter group, are at odds over control of Sydney’s narcotics trade.
There are a number of theories regarding the perpetrator of the fatal shooting.
Members of the Alameddine network are said to have taken credit for the execution in messages that SCN Worldstar was able to collect.
A message said, “That’s what happens when Coconuts try (and) fight the people that made them.”
However, following a string of drive-by shootings and firebombings throughout the city in recent months, not everyone thinks the execution is connected to the gangland warfare in Sydney.
Lemalu, who had a falling out with the Alameddines, was a prominent commander in the Coconut Cartel.
A criminal residing abroad told the Daily Telegraph, “The big rumor is that they ripped off some Albanians and that’s why he was killed.”
Let’s be clear: this was not an attack by Almo. The Coconut Cartel has stated on the internet that the shooting was a case of mistaken identity. The post stated, “It was an accident. The Coconut Cartel is here and we’re still coming for you forever strong.”
