R v Qaumi (No 58)

In the Supreme Court of Victoria, the defendant, Qaumi, was charged with murder as part of a joint criminal enterprise. The case involved a gangland war between rival groups, Brothers for Life and Little Crazy's mother, where Qaumi was alleged to have directed a shooting at a specific townhouse. The evidence presented by the Crown was tenuous, with a shooter hitting a different person and a different townhouse within the same complex. The legal issue was whether the evidence was capable of establishing the charge and if the original criminal enterprise had come to an end due to the bungled execution.
The court considered whether the evidence was sufficient to establish the charge and if the crime was part of the agreed criminal enterprise. The court noted that the Crown's case was weak, and there was no clear evidence that the accused was involved in the planning or execution of the shooting. The court also considered whether the crime had actually been committed as part of the agreed criminal enterprise. The court held that the limited power to direct a verdict of not guilty should not be exercised where the Crown case was weak or tenuous. The court concluded that the evidence was insufficient to establish the charge, and a directed verdict of not guilty was appropriate.
The court directed a verdict of not guilty for the defendant on the charge of murder. The court found that the Crown's case was weak and did not provide sufficient evidence to establish the charge. The court held that the limited power to direct a verdict of not guilty should only be exercised where the Crown case was weak or tenuous, and in this case, the evidence was insufficient to establish the charge. The court acknowledged the seriousness of the alleged crime but held that the evidence was not sufficient to support a conviction. The court directed a verdict of not guilty for the defendant on the charge of murder.