Man charged over kidnapping of bikie murder victim

A man involved in the kidnapping of a co-worker on a bike months before the execution-style murder has been charged more than two years after the alleged crime.

The 27-year-old man was arrested at Dawes Point in the Sydney CBD in the early hours of Wednesday after police found $31,700 in cash during a search of his car.

He was charged with participating in a criminal group with intent to ransom causing actual bodily harm for the kidnapping of murder victim Marvin Oraiha.

Mr Oraiha, then 24, was a low-level associate of the Comancheros bikie gang who was shot dead in his car at Elizabeth Hills in Sydney’s west on May 22, 2023.

He was ambushed shortly after meeting his girlfriend that afternoon.

Emergency services found him with multiple gunshot wounds and he died at the scene.

Police have charged 11 people for their alleged involvement in the shooting, following concerns that war between rival crime groups is escalating.

Mr Oraiha’s death was followed by a series of public shootings as gangs competed for Sydney’s lucrative drug trade.

However, further investigation revealed that Mr Oraiha was kidnapped by a gang before his death.

He was abducted months ago and detained at the Belfield unit in Sydney’s west.

Throughout the night, his kidnappers sent photos of the 24-year-old with serious head injuries to his family and demanded a ransom.

The 27-year-old man allegedly involved in the incident will appear in the Bail Division court later on Thursday.