Unanderra shooter Jason Speelman found guilty of attempted murder

Split from his wife Michelle but still in love, Speelman’s long held hopes for a reunion between the pair were dashed when he learned she was secretly seeing another man. More so, it was his one-time friend, Robert ‘Builder’ Fitzgerald.

Speelman was an emotional wreck. He begged Michelle to end the relationship but quickly realised his plea was falling on deaf ears.

Red, hot rage began to swirl inside him. In his mind, Fitzgerald was a “dog” and this ultimate act of betrayal couldn’t go unpunished.

At 8.30 that night he turned up at the Fitzgerald household in Graham Street, Unanderra, looking for his love rival.

When told he wasn’t home, Speelman issued an ominous warning: “I’ll be back”.

And return he did, some four hours later. But a civilised conversation between two grown men was the furthest thing from his mind: Speelman had armed himself with a gun and he was out for blood.

Fitzgerald was his intended target, but by the end of the night it would be Fitzgerald’s best friend that lay on the grass verge outside the property, fighting for his life after being shot in the head at point blank range.

The man had managed to alert Fitzgerald to Speelman’s arrival in time for Fitzgerald to lock himself in the garage out of harm’s way.

However, the man only made it to a set of stairs beside the house before Speelman came down the short driveway, brandishing the gun and yelling for Fitzgerald to show his face.

Turning his head towards the noise, the man was met by the sight of a gun just centimetres from his face.

A split-second later, Speelman pulled the trigger.

The bullet entered the man’s right cheek and exited at the base of his skull. Miraculously, he survived his injuries and was even able to implicate Speelman as he was being transported to hospital.

Speelman admitted he had been angry and frustrated after learning of his ex-wife’s new romance, but denied he was responsible for the shooting.

However, on Thursday, Judge Andrew Haesler found Speelman guilty of attempted murder, saying he was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Speelman had been on the other end of the gun that night.

Speelman was remanded in custody to face sentencing in November.