A man has been acquitted over the drive-by shooting of his former prison mate outside a Melbourne mosque.
Mohammed Oueida was shot in the abdomen when he left the Coburg Islamic Centre with two other men in April 2017.
Osman Tiba was not the gunman. But he was behind the wheel of the BMW while another man opened fire.
After they drove off, Mr Oueida fired back with a series of texts including one that said "missed me bitches".
Tiba was acquitted in Victoria's Supreme Court on Thursday of intentionally and recklessly causing serious injury in circumstances of gross violence.
The 36-year-old was also found not guilty of two counts of conduct endangering life.
He and Mr Oueida previously met in prison.
Tiba wanted his $90,000 drug debt to Mr Oueida waived, because he was working to turn his life around and auditioning for an SBS show about the Muslim community.
He admitted driving the gunman to and from the scene.
The court was told Tiba didn't know that man was armed or intended to shoot Mr Oueida until it was too late.
Justice Stephen Kaye, who oversaw the trial alone because of COVID-19, found there wasn't enough evidence to prove Tiba was in on the plan.
Mr Oueida needed surgery for his injuries. But just after the shooting, he sent Tiba a series of texts.
"Hey dog lucky u (sic) c***s are a s*** shot lol!" he wrote.
"Osman Tiba you mutt u n ur (sic) dog pack will learn who the f*** I am rat! Big mistake!!!"
Tiba asked who was texting and the other man replied: "Missed me bitches".
Australian Associated Press
