ACT Supreme Court hears closing arguments in shooting trial of Sugimatatihuna Mena

Sugimatatihuna Bernard Gabriel Mena, 24, is charged with attempted murder, an alternative allegation of intentionally inflicting grievous bodily harm, and unlawfully discharging a firearm in an act endangering life.

Co-accused Bradley Joe Roberts and Rebecca Dulcie Parlov, both aged in their mid-20s, are charged along with Mena with joint commission aggravated burglary.

All three have pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

Parlov and Roberts allegedly took issue with the victim in the early hours of March 11, 2021, when he was in the car with a woman at Bonner shops.

Their gripe with him was that they thought he was a "kiddie fiddler".

Later that morning, Parlov allegedly sent messages to the man's female companion, who cannot be named, saying they were going to come to her house as the victim was present.

Parlov and Roberts allegedly then forced themselves into the unidentifiable woman's home when she opened the door, before Mena allegedly came in and took a gun out of the waistband of his pants.

Mena is accused of then shooting the victim in the stomach, before reloading the gun and firing it into the man's face.

In closing addresses to the jury on Wednesday, defence lawyers for Mena, Parlov and Roberts argued the reliance on the victim and the unidentifiable woman's evidence meant there was too much reasonable doubt to find the accused guilty.

Mena's barrister, Slade Howell, said it was important for the jury to separate the evidence on whether his client was the shooter and the reliability of the victim and female witness.

Mr Howell argued there was significant doubt about whether Mena was the gunman.

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"If it's possible that [the witnesses] are mistaken, then the Crown would not have satisfied you beyond reasonable doubt," Mr Howell said.

Mr Howell referred to the victim's description of Mena as a "dark kid", arguing research showed people struggled to identify others of a different racial background effectively.

The victim was also a "target for retribution", Mr Howell said, referring to text messages between the man and his partner when he said he was being "blooded out" of a gang and another person was after him.

The possibility the female witness being involved in the offending was another suggestion Mr Howell made to the jury.

"She cleaned up the crime scene. Why did she do that?" Mr Howell asked.

Parlov's barrister, Keegan Lee, also described the victim and female witness as "practised liars", who were untrustworthy and dishonest to police and the courts.

Mr Lee said of all the messages from Parlov and Roberts, there was "not a single message" supporting their alleged motive that the victim was a "kiddie fiddler".

Counsel for Roberts, Mary Keaney, described an "anti-snitch culture" as being a factor that placed doubt on the credibility of the victim and the female witness.

Justice David Mossop is expected to address the jury on Thursday before it retires to deliver a verdict.

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