The Moran family is an infamous

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia-based criminal familyDouble murder signals stepping up of underworld war
, ''

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'', 23 June 2003. notable for their involvement in the Melbourne gangland killings. Family matriarch Judy Moran lost two sons,

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...

and

Mark Mark may refer to: In the Bible * Mark the Evangelist (5–68), traditionally ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark * Gospel of Mark, one of the four canonical gospels and one of the three synoptic gospels Currencies * Mark (currency), a currenc ...

, estranged husband Lewis, and brother-in-law Des in an underworld feud that resulted in the deaths of over 30 criminals from January 1998 to August 2010.

Family members

Members of the Moran family include:

Lewis Moran

Lewis Moran was the

patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Roman Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and ...

and father of Jason Moran. On 31 March 2004 he was shot dead in a club on Sydney Road, Brunswick.Crime patriarch shot dead
, ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'', 1 April 2004. At the time of his death he was on bail facing drug trafficking charges. Police had unsuccessfully attempted to keep Lewis Moran imprisoned due to concerns for his safety.

Judy Moran

Judy Moran is the

matriarch Matriarchy is a social system in which positions of power and privilege are held by women. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege, and control of property. While those definitions apply in general English, ...

of the family. She was first married to Leslie John Cole, who was shot dead in Boronia Street, Kyle Bay,

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

during a gangland conflict on 10 November 1982.Judy Moran signs with Harry M Miller
, ''Sydney Morning Herald'', 12 April 2004. Judy Moran was divorced from Cole at the time of his death and had begun a relationship with Lewis Moran. Though she legally assumed the surname of Moran, she and Lewis Moran were never married. On 16 June 2009, Judy Moran and three others were arrested in relation to the murder of Desmond Moran, Lewis's brother, in Ascot Vale on 15 June 2009. Judy Moran was subsequently charged with being an accessory after the fact and remanded into custody. On the night of 16 June her home in Ascot Vale was set on fire in an apparent

arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...

attack. On 9 March 2011, Judy Moran was convicted of the murder of Des 'Tuppence' Moran, and 10 August 2011 she was sentenced to 26 years' imprisonment for the murder.

Desmond Moran

Desmond "Tuppence" Moran, the brother of Lewis Moran, had publicly claimed to be out of the criminal business.Last Moran standing
, ''

Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a Conservatism, conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the American Rupert Murdoch, Murd ...

'', 15 April 2007. On 17 March 2009 at about 8.50pm, he was the target of an unsuccessful assassination attempt outside his home in Langs Road, Ascot Vale. As he sat in his car, a single bullet struck the steering wheel and was deflected from the driver. Moran was in the passenger seat, and witnesses claim to have seen the would-be killer fleeing immediately after firing the single shot. At about midday on 15 June 2009, Moran was shot dead outside the Ascot Pasta and Deli Cafe on Union Road in Ascot Vale."Des Moran shot dead in Melbourne's Ascot Vale"
''The Age'', 15 June 2009. On 16 June, Judy Moran and three others were arrested for his murder. The others arrested included Suzie Kane, sister-in-law of Judy Moran's deceased son, Jason Moran. Judy Moran and Kane were subsequently charged with being an accessory after the fact. On 9 March 2011, Judy was found guilty of his murder and 10 August 2011 she was sentenced to 26 years' imprisonment for his murder.

Mark Moran

Mark Moran (born Mark Cole) was the son of Judy Moran and her first husband, Leslie Cole. On 15 June 2000, Mark Moran was killed by two bullets as he was getting into his car outside his luxury home in Aberfeldie.

Jason Moran

Jason Moran was imprisoned on assault-related charges for a brawl in a King Street Nightclub. Alphonse Gangitano was also charged but was murdered before sentencing. Jason Moran was considered a person of interest in Gangitano's murder. On 21 June 2003, Jason Moran and associate Pasquale Barbaro were shot by a lone gunman whilst watching a Saturday morning

Auskick Auskick is a program designed to teach the basic skills of Australian football to children aged between 5 and 12. Auskick is a non-contact variant of the sport. It began in Australia and is now a nationwide non-selective program. It has incre ...

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

clinic his children were attending. Police feared the murder of Jason Moran would lead to further violence in the Melbourne underworld war.

References in popular culture

The family's activities were the primary plot of the television series '' Underbelly''.

References

External links

Taskforce to probe underworld killings
John Silvester, Ian Munro, Jamie Berry, ''The Age'', 23 June 2003.
Mobsters Inc: How Melbourne became No.1 with a bullet
Adam Shand, '' The Bulletin'', 18 February 2004. {{Authority control Organised crime in Melbourne Organised crime groups in Australia Australian families Crime families Irish Mob