Calgary gang trial derailed after victim refuses to point finger at cousin
Tarek El-Rafie accused of shooting at cousin Mohamad Rafih
Charges have been dropped against a suspected Calgary gangster accused of shooting at his own cousin from a moving vehicle.
On Friday, Tarek El-Rafie, 26, left the courtroom with a smile on his face after prosecutor Adam May directed a stay of proceedings on the charge of discharging a firearm with intent to wound.
Although the jury trial was supposed to begin Monday, it was delayed for a week while lawyers dealt with the victim, Mohamad Rafih, 22.
During a separate hearing Rafih changed his story, telling the Court of Queen's Bench Justice Jim Eamon that he does not know who shot at his car though he initially told a 911 operator and police it was El-Rafie.
May directed the stay hours after that evidence came to light.
Though he wouldn't comment on why the charge was stayed, defence lawyer Kelsey Sitar offered a theory.
"From my perspective there were frailties in the case from the beginning," said Sitar who represented El-Rafie alongside Sarah Rankin.
El-Rafie was arrested in November 2015 at the airport by the guns and gangs unit, trying to fly to Lebanon where he told officers he would be joining his fiance. He faces several other attempted murder charges and remains in custody.
Both El-Rafie and Rafih are believed to be part of a violent gang war involving mostly members of Calgary's Lebanese community — often brothers and cousins.
Rafih was charged with first-degree murder in November in the death of Timothy Albert Voytilla, 44.
In December, Rafih and his mother Rasmya Alhija were jointly charged with obstruction in connection with his murder charge.
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