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The Sydney Morning Herald
· collected 2026-09-20 · by The Herald's View
The New South Wales government responded quickly to recent mistaken identity gangland killings by introducing harsher penalties for child offenders linked to organized crime. One of the cases involved the murder of Marco Tapia, where a 14-year-old was charged in connection with the crime. Premier Chris Minns announced new measures including expanding serious children’s indictable offences schemes and trying these offenders as adults, resulting in longer prison sentences. However, critics argue that such punitive measures are not effective for addressing root causes and suggest community-based diversion programs as a more productive alternative.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-21,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In response to recent mistaken identity gangland killings in Sydney—where Marco Tapia and Joshua Macdonald were mistakenly shot by teenagers hired for as little as a few hundred dollars—the NSW government is proposing harsher penalties for young offenders linked to organized crime. Chris Minns, the Premier of New South Wales, described those involved in such crimes as “bastards” and acknowledged that police have lost control of gang violence in Sydney. Despite this tough stance, a Senate report highlights that community-based diversion programs are more effective and cost-efficient than incarceration for reducing youth offending and improving public safety.
Written for “Youth Crime Solutions” on 2026-10-04,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
It took only a week after two mistaken identity gangland hits in as many days for the NSW government to introduce harsher penalties for child offenders linked to organised crime.
asserted
government → take → crime
And therein lies the problem.
asserted
problem → lie → ?
Marco Tapia, 23, and Joshua Macdonald, 40, died a day apart this month after being shot inside their homes in killings that bore the hallmarks of organised crime.
asserted
that → die → crime
In both cases, police do not believe that the victims were the intended targets of the attacks.
asserted
victims → believe → attacks
Neither man had any known links to organised crime.
asserted
man → have → crime
In both cases, police later charged teenagers in relation to the crimes.
asserted
police → charge → crimes
One of the children charged with murdering Tapia was just 14 years old.
asserted
One → charge → Tapia
The apparently growing phenomenon of crime bosses recruiting teenage hitmen to eliminate their rivals, reportedly for as little as a few hundred dollars, is certainly one that demands a response.
uncertain
that → grow → response
Even before the alleged assailants in the Tapia case were identified as juveniles, he described the perpetrators as “bastards” and agreed that police had lost control of gang violence in Sydney.
asserted
police → allege → Sydney
The new measures he announced last week to address gangland violence followed through on his rhetoric.
asserted
he → announce → rhetoric
They include expanding the serious children’s indictable offences scheme to enable children committing offences linked to organised crime to face harsher penalties.
asserted
children → include → penalties
Offenders charged under the scheme must be tried as adults in the District Court and Supreme Court, and they face longer prison sentences than if they were prosecuted in the Children’s Court.
asserted
they → charge → Court
To be sure, this tougher stance will send a message to those repeat offenders who believe that the youth justice system offers nothing more than a slap on the wrist.
asserted
system → send → wrist
But mollifying the law-and-order chest-beaters and addressing the problem are two different things.
asserted
mollifying → mollify → problem
For other offences that might be caught by laws, sentencing is the wrong place to begin.
uncertain
sentencing → catch → laws
Children who carry out such actions are not rationally thinking through the consequences, far less weighing up potential penalties.
asserted
who → carry → penalties
By the time a perpetrator is sentenced, the moment for their path to take a different turn has been long lost.
asserted
path → sentence → turn
A Senate report into Australia’s youth justice system noted on Friday that community-based diversion and early prevention programs were more effective and less costly than incarceration to reduce offending and improve public safety.
asserted
programs → note → safety
Such programs might include the one offered by the United Muslims of Australia, which Riley Walter reports in Monday’s Herald seeks to give boys a sense of belonging that many seek in criminal gangs.
uncertain
many → include → gangs
“You’ve got to ask yourself what those boys are finding in those gangs,” said UMA’s youth co-ordinator, Zaid Omran.
asserted
ordinator → get → gangs
“They’re finding brotherhood, they’re finding identity, they’re finding social insurance, they’re finding a home away from home.”
asserted
they → find → home
These take years and the involvement of many agencies to address.
asserted
These → take → agencies
It’s just a lot less sexy to tackle the problem by doing what in many cases is already being done – but better.
asserted
what → ’ → cases
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asserted
that → get → own
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