Former Comanchero president Mahmoud ‘Mick’ Hawi has been described as a loyal friend who ‘kept his mouth shut’ and never ‘snitched on a brother’ in a tribute on social media.
The warning to other bikies dressed up as a tribute to the 37-year-old Lebanese migrant was posted on Facebook on Thursday, just hours after he was gunned down outside of a Fitness First gym in south Sydney in broad daylight.
Paramedics and police tried to save the father-of-two as the suspected gunman leaped into a getaway car, sparking fears of a resurgence in violent street gang wars.
Former Comanchero president Mahmoud ‘Mick’ Hawi was described as a loyal friend who ‘kept his mouth shut’ in an unsettling warning dressed as a tribute by Motorcycle Clubs Australia
Hawi was married to his high school sweetheart Carolina Gonzales (pictured) and the couple had two children together
Hawi was gunned down outside of a Fitness First gym in south Sydney on Thursday (pictured is a black Mercedes riddled with bullets in front of the gym)
Police are hunting two masked assassins caught on CCTV after the shooting after the suspected getaway car – a luxury silver Mercedes – was set on fire and dumped on a nearby street.
‘Mahmoud Mick Hawi lives by the code, lives by the principles and never strayed,’ the tribute began.
‘He Keep his mouth shut, no matter what. No club secrets are revealed, he never snitched on a friend or brother even if he must take the fall. Kept his word. Did what he said he’d do, never cheated a friend or brother.
‘Always 100 per cent…gave everything he had. He never quit on himself his club or his family. Took care of his brothers and family no matter what obstacles stood in the way. He was staunch to the code.
‘Mick Hawi rest in peace brother,’ the post ended.
Hawi has been a key figure in the criminal underworld since joining the Comancheros at the age of 18.
The 37-year-old moved to Australian in 1985 after fleeing war-torn Lebanon with his parents, brother and three sisters
In 1998, he joined the Comancheros as an 18-year-old and was sentenced to a three-month suspended jail term for a series of driving offences (Hawi is pictures with Carolina)
Grieving friends and family have posted tributes to Hawi on social media
Hawi took over as the national president of the Comancheros in 2002
The 37-year-old moved to Australian in 1985 after fleeing war-torn Lebanon with his parents, brother and three sisters, the Daily Telegraph reported.
He met his wife Carolina Gonzales when they were teenagers in 1995 and obtained a school certificate from Punchbowl High School in 1996.
After school he started a TAFE course but left to join his dad’s spray painting business.
Hawi was just 18 when he joined the Comancheros in 1998 and was sentenced to a three-month suspended jail term for a series of driving offences, the publication said.
Around the same time, Hawi was convicted of assault and sentenced to community service.
Hawi married Carolina Gonzales in 2002, the same year he took over as the national president of the Comancheros.
His first son was born two years later.
The 37-year-old was fined for possession of a prescribed substance in 2005, but didn’t become a household name until 2009, when he was involved in a fatal brawl between the Comancheros and rival gang the Hells Angels at Sydney Airport.
Hawi met Ms Gonzales (pictured left) in 1995 and the couple were married in 2002
The 37-year-old didn’t become a household name until 2009, when he was involved in a fatal brawl between the Comancheros and rival gang the Hells Angels at Sydney Airport
The two gang members had a history dating back to when they were at school with each other, but it did not stop the fight on March 22, 2009 (pictured)
The melee was described in court as an ‘explosion of violence’ that ended with Anthony Zervas (airport crime scene pictured)
Anthony Zervas (pictured) was the younger brother of Hells Angel Peter Zervas
The melee was described in court as an ‘explosion of violence’ that ended with Anthony Zervas, the brother of a Hells Angels gang members, being stabbed and bludgeoned to death with a 17kg steel bollard.
Carolina gave birth to Hawi’s second child in 2010, two years before he was found guilty of murdering Zervas and was sentenced to 28 years with a non-parole period of 21 years.
The former bikie boss successfully appealed and the charge was downgraded to manslaughter with a maximum sentence of six years and two months with a non-parole period of three years and six months.
Hawi was released on parole in 2015 with 22 conditions, one being he was not allowed to associate with bikie gang members.
At the time he reportedly told friends and family he was stepping away from the underworld for good, although he felt like he had a target on his back.
The violent execution of Hawi on Thursday has raised fears of an all-out bikie war, with police confirming he has many enemies, including Buddle
Police officers are seen collecting evidence at the crime scene
Hawi (pictured) reportedly told friends and family he was stepping away from the bikie underworld for good when he was released from prison
A teenager claiming to be Hawi’s son was photographed at the car park just after 3pm (pictured) being comforted by other people
The 37-year-old often took extra safety precautions including driving in a bullet proof car – which helped him escape death in 2007 when his car was shot a number of times.
Hawi, 37, is believed to have recently had a ‘blow up’ with rival Mark Buddle, 32, who appointed himself president of the outlaw motorcycle club after Hawi’s murder arrest in 2009.
Buddle, 32, who fled Australia in 2010 after a security guard was fatally shot, clashed with Hawi six weeks ago, leaving tensions high between the two bikie powerbrokers.
The violent execution of Hawi on Thursday has raised fears of an all-out bikie war, with police confirming he has many enemies, including Buddle.
A balaclava-wearing assailant fired multiple bullets at the father-of-two at about 12.10pm (alleged suspects pictured fleeing the scene)
Police are hunting two masked assassins caught on CCTV after the shooting after the suspected getaway car – a luxury silver Mercedes – was set on fire and dumped on a nearby street