During the 12 months Ali Chaouk has spent free from prison in the past 14 years, he got married, became a father and murdered his Melbourne crime family rival Mohammed Haddara.
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In a pre-sentence hearing in the Supreme Court on Thursday, the 39-year-old's barrister accepted that the killer is facing a significant jail term, but sought some hope for his future release.
Chaouk was convicted in December of the June 2009 murder of 28-year-old Mr Haddara at suburban Altona North.
Mr Haddara was shot five times from behind outside his Fifth Avenue home after an argument about a Mercedes he'd borrowed for his sister's wedding.
A first jury was dismissed after they raised questions about their safety, commenting on the presence of heavy security in court.
A second jury agreed with arguments put by prosecutor Pat Bourke that animosity over the car was the "catalyst" for the crime.
"It wasn't really the reason but it was the catalyst. It set it off," he said.
Ahmed Hablas, the cousin of Chaouk's wife, initially confessed to the killing but retracted his statement and was acquitted by a jury in 2011.
He later said he'd confessed out of fear. He gave evidence against Chaouk at trial and made a private statement to the court on Thursday.
Mr Bourke also read a letter from Mr Haddara's widow, Mirna Hussain.
The couple had two young daughters and she was eight months pregnant with their son when her husband was killed.
He is now nine. She tells him his father was sick and died peacefully.
"One day he will find out and understand the truth. I am afraid of that day," she wrote.
Chaouk's barrister Patrick Tehan QC said the murder was "a largely spontaneous matter, somewhat impulsive".
Except for a 12-month window between September 2008 and October 2009, his client had been in jail since early 2005, the lawyer said.
Mr Tehan urged Justice Kevin Bell to be lenient in setting a non-parole period.
"The prison sentence will be not insignificant. Give this man some hope for release," he said.
Chaouk faced court by video link, with Mr Tehan declining to reveal publicly which prison his client was in.
Mr Haddara's murder sparked fears of a new gangland war between the long-time rival Chaouk and Haddara families.
Less than a year after Mr Haddara's killing, Ali Chaouk's father and family patriarch Macchour Chaouk was gunned down outside his Brooklyn home.
A 2016 inquest was told he named Ahmed Haddara as his killer before dying. The accused was arrested but released and never charged, and the murder remains unsolved.
Ali Chaouk's brother was jailed in 2013 over a drive-by shooting targeting the Haddara family.
Justice Bell is set to sentence Ali Chaouk, again appearing by video link, on June 13.
Australian Associated Press
