Rachael Ward, AAP
A man who shot his ex-wife’s new partner at a flower stall has directed a tirade of abuse towards a Supreme Court justice after learning he’ll spend at least 15 years behind bars.
Abil Malovski interrupted Justice Andrew Tinney in a Melbourne court on Wednesday and called him “dog” among other insults.
“Only God can sentence me,” he yelled in court.
Malovski repeatedly shouted slurs at Justice Tinney and another person sitting in court.
The outburst continued as he was taken away, with Justice Tinney noting he also made a crude gesture towards him.
Abil Malovski repeatedly opened fire on his ex-wife’s new partner Steven Grant and chased him around a public reserve in Mebourne’s west on the Saturday before Mother’s Day 2022.
He fired shots in front of many witnesses at the Melton park including his 10-year-old year son, with a jury finding him guilty of attempted murder in October this year.
Justice Tinney described the events at the reserve as an “extravagant display of violence” and said it was clear to him that Malovski had no remorse.
He told the court Malovski had provided an “entirely phoney” account about what happened to police while maintaining the sham that the shooting was in self-defence.
Mr Grant spent five months in hospital after the shooting and has been left an incomplete paraplegic who cannot drive, catch public transport, work as a personal trainer or perform other everyday activities on his own.
Justice Tinney said Malovski’s son is plagued by nightmares about the attack while his ex-wife lives with crippling anxiety and is worried about what would happen to any other men she appears with in public.
The judge said there is no reason to think Malovski’s anger and resentment over the end of his marriage that boiled over into a murderous rage had dissipated and he presents as “entirely unrepentant”.
“You remain a dangerous person and will for some time to come,” Justice Tinney said.
He was sentenced to a total of 20 years’ jail with a minimum parole period of 15 years over attempted murder and a second charge, making it one of the state’s longest sentences for this type of offending.
Violence against former partners and their new friends is “depressingly frequent”, Justice Tinney said, revealing community protection was a major factor behind the length of the sentence.
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