Wests Tigers junior Masei Tavui has been charged with murder.
Tavui, 19, was charged with one count of murder on Tuesday following the death of Dejan “Danny the Serb” Radulovic on July 29.
Radulovic was killed after he was allegedly shot and stabbed on Donnelly St in Balmain in Sydney’s inner-west following an altercation with two men.
The backrower has come through the Wests Tigers junior ranks, playing Harold Matthews and SG Ball.
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Tavui was arrested after riot squad police raided his Austral home at 7:15am and executed a search warrant.
They were seen on camera combing through the property and talking to the shirtless Tavau who sat calmly talking to police in handcuffs, before being taken away in a paddy wagon to Liverpool Police Station.
The search found and seized “clothing relevant to their investigation”.
“It will undergo further forensic examination,” NSW Police said.
On the day of the alleged murder, police were called to Donnelly Street in Balmain at 3:40pm on July 29, following reports of an assault.
Officers arrived to find Dejan ‘Danny’ Radulovic suffering significant head and torso injuries, with police alleging his wounds were from being bashed and stabbed.
Paramedics treated him to the scene before taking him to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.
Despite efforts of medical staff, he could not be saved.
An autopsy of the 29-year-old discovered he had also suffered a gunshot wound.
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“Police have been told Danny Radulovic was injured during an altercation with two men before the pair allegedly fled the scene in a white Jeep,” a NSW Police spokesperson said in a statement.
The car was later found dumped in Five Dock a short time later, with a gun inside.
It’s understood that Radulovic was reportedly an underworld figure on parole for drug supply when he was killed.
Tavui was refused bail and will appear before Liverpool Local Court on Tuesday.One man has been charged as an accessory to the murder and remains before the court.
