Slain gangster mother Lametta Fadlallah has been farewelled in an intimate and sombre ceremony nine days after she was brutally shot dead on her way to a party.
Mourners gathered at Saint Charbel’s Monastery in Punchbowl on Monday morning to pay tribute to the ‘fiercely loyal’ mother-of-two.
Ms Fadlallah’s white coffin – adorned with white hydrangeas and roses – was blessed before six men carried it into the church.
Her teenage son remained stoic as he followed the coffin inside, clutching onto a framed photograph of his mother.
A distant relative told Daily Mail Australia he has a ‘heavy burden’ to bear as a 16-year-old orphan.
‘He lost his dad and had to cope and now his mum is gone too. She did everything for him and now she’s gone as well,’ the woman said.
‘How does any 16-year-old boy cope with being an orphan?’
Ms Fadlallah’s white coffin – adorned with white hydrangeas and roses – was blessed before eight men carried it into the church
Her teenage son remained stoic as he followed the coffin inside, clutching onto a framed photograph of his mother.
Ms Fadlallah’s teenage son appeared stoic but a relative said he is struggling with her death in ‘so many ways’
Lametta Fadlallah was not the type of woman to ‘snitch’, but would do anything in her power to protect the people she loved, a friend told Daily Mail Australia
Soulful music played as mourners made their way inside, passing by a beaming photo of Ms Fadlallah at the entrance.
Many stroked the grand marble statue of Saint Charbel, who is famed for his ability to h its Christians and Muslims, as they made their way inside.
But dozens more mourners watched on from outside the church, while others gathered at their homes across the street to pay their respects.
Police were in attendance but opted to keep a respectful distance from the service. At least four marked police cars drove laps of the block as the service got underway.
Ms Fadlallah, 48, was shot dead in the back seat of a car on August 13 alongside her hairdresser friend Amy Hazouri, 39.
Daily Mail Australia revealed Ms Fadlallah was targeted because she snitched to the NSW Crime Commission. It’s understood the price on her head was as high as $500,000.
Ms Fadlallah’s brother provided a flower wreath with the message: ‘From your loving brother Melad, Norma’
Six men carried Ms Fadlallah’s coffin inside as the service got underway on Monday morning
Ms Fadlallah had grown increasingly concerned in recent months that there was a target on her back
Ms Fadlallah was not the type of woman to ‘snitch’, but would do anything in her power to protect those close to her, a friend told Daily Mail Australia.
So when she learned someone she cared deeply about was in serious trouble with the law, she reportedly contacted the Crime Commission.
From that moment on, Ms Fadlallah was a marked woman.
The underworld mum knew the price of speaking out – and spent her final days looking over her shoulder.
‘I think she knew it was coming,’ her friend said.
In the months before she was shot dead beside her hairdresser friend Amy Hazouri, 39, Ms Fadlallah installed multiple high-tech security cameras at her Revesby home.
Those very cameras likely captured the moment she was ambushed alongside Ms Hazouri as they made their way to an engagement party on Saturday night.
Police maintained a respectful distance but were seen doing laps of the block as the service got underway
A car was found burnt out in the nearby suburb of Panania shortly after the shooting
Pictured: Ms Fadlallah’s coffin as it is carried into her funeral service
Gunmen fired at least a dozen bullets into the backseat of the Toyota 4WD they were riding in, killing Ms Fadlallah instantly. Ms Hazouri later died from her injuries.
Ms Fadlallah was no stranger to the rules of the underworld, having been involved in in criminal activity – either through marriage or in her own right – for many decades.
She was well aware of the price of speaking to police.
‘As it was put to me, the killers don’t think they have broken any rules to stay away from women and family because that’s not why she was targeted. She is dead because she snitched,’ a friend said.
‘She didn’t deserve to die… She was a good woman and did everything for everyone, but they’re the rules. In their eyes, that’s something worthy of being murdered for.’
Ms Fadlallah had the security cameras installed in May after her white Range Rover was hit at both ends.
‘She was shaken up. Some of her friends would ask her what was going on… what was wrong. But she said nothing, she didn’t want to burden anyone.
‘Lam wasn’t being herself.’
A teenage TikTok star with more than 100,000 followers and her boyfriend were in the front of the car and witnessed the entire attack.
CCTV footage from a neighboring property showed the gunmen tapped four times on the car window before firing any shots, reportedly ensuring Ms Fadlallah knew she was about to die.
Gunmen fired at least a dozen bullets into the backseat of the Toyota 4WD they were riding in, killing Ms Fadlallah instantly. Ms Hazouri later died from her injuries
The two young survivors are said to be traumatised.
It’s understood the loved one she tried to protect is struggling to come to terms with her death and the sacrifice she made for their safety.
Sources say they’re hopeful none of Ms Fadlallah’s associates will attempt to retaliate for the hit.
‘The little one is an orphan now, he’s got no mum and no dad,’ one source said of her youngest son, who recently turned 16.
He has a close relationship with Ms Fadlallah’s adult son Ibrahim from her first marriage with reformed gangster Shadi Derbas.
Both Mr Derbas and Ms Fadlallah were desperate to keep Ibrahim safe and out of trouble throughout their marriage and in the years since.
They maintained a friendship even when they both moved on with new partners and it’s understood Ms Fadlallah was still considered part of the family.
‘If she ever loved you, she loved you forever,’ a friend said. ‘She wouldn’t give up on anyone.’
The friend also criticised the decision to portray Ms Fadlallah as a serious criminal and gangster in the days since her death.
She had ‘made some questionable decisions’ but wore her heart on her sleeve and worked with ‘what she had’.
‘She married into the life… That doesn’t make her evil. Knowing evil people doesn’t make you evil yourself.’
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