Father found guilty of murder over son’s stolen wallet

A father who shot another man after claiming he stole a wallet has been found guilty of murder.

Luke James Picking, 42, admitted killing 33-year-old Abdurhman Jemal in March 2024 but denied committing murder, claiming he pulled the trigger by accident.

A Victorian Supreme Court jury rejected his claims on Wednesday and found Picking guilty of murdering Mr Jemal outside the Glenroy shopping street in Melbourne’s north.

His 19-year-old son, Brodi, was acquitted of murder but convicted of the lesser charge of manslaughter.

Brodi knew Mr Jemal, the jury heard, but the pair fell out in early March after Brodi accused Jemal, 33, of stealing his wallet.

The jury was told the two men got into an argument in a Bunnings car park on March 28 and Brodi allegedly told a friend he was going to “kill the f*ck”.

An hour before the shooting, Brodi and Luke Picking drove through locations connected to Mr Jemal, including his mother’s home.

They found Mr Jemal driving a red Hyundai in Glenroy and followed him until he pulled over and confronted them.

CCTV footage shown to the jury showed shouting between two groups before Mr Jemal was shot in the face.

Luke Picking told Mr Jemal “you want to launch an air strike” before firing the gun and speeding away, the jury was told.

He died after receiving multiple shotgun pellet hits on his face and neck.

Prosecutors alleged that after the murder Luke Picking contacted his friend Ian Harris, 49, to get rid of the gun.

Harris was found not guilty of a charge of aiding a felon.

Brodi and Luke Picking were detained while awaiting a pre-sentence hearing.