Man shot dead in Springvale believed to have been killed by childhood friend

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Man shot dead in Springvale believed to have been killed by childhood friend

A man was allegedly shot dead in the chest at arm's length by another man believed to have been his childhood friend.

Winis Apet, 20, was found in a pool of blood with a single gunshot wound to his chest on Springvale Road in Springvale just before midnight on Sunday.

Detectives from the homicide squad arrested 19-year-old Paguir Pan in Dandenong about 11.20am on Monday. He was charged with one count of murder.

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The two men had known each other since childhood, Nine News reported.

Pan did not appear at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday with his defence lawyer, Katie Powell, citing he had medical issues. She did not specify what they were.

There was no application for bail and he was remanded to appear in court again on March 13.

Police say the incident - which is the fifth shooting death in the city in less than a fortnight - is not connected to the shootings last week in Kensington, Meadow Heights and Dandenong.

CCTV footage captured nearby of the moments before the fatal shooting shows a man, believed to be Pan, dressed in a red pants and black jumper, carrying a bag as he walks towards the scene.

One witness, who said they knew Mr Apet, told reporters at the scene he had posted on Snapchat that he was going to be shot the night he was killed.

But Victoria Police Commander Tim Hansen said it was too early in the investigation to speculate on whether the victim had posted that his life was in danger on social media.

It is understood Mr Apet had been at a nearby cafe in the hours before he was gunned down.

"I saw a guy lying on the ground bleeding and a lot of people looking scared," one witness told Nine News.

A large crime scene was established outside Springvale Authentic Thai Massage early on Monday and homicide squad detectives spent the morning examining a number of items of dark clothing left at the scene.

The scene of the shooting is a laneway with a small car park located between a massage parlour and a supermarket which has closed down.

Cleaners arrived at the scene about 9am and were pouring chemicals on the road where the body was found.

A man who works in the massage parlour but did not want to be identified said they had been there for three years and they had never had any trouble in the laneway.

They also spent time in a car park at the end of the laneway where the man was found.

It follows a spate of shootings in Melbourne last week. Four people died in the space of four days after three shootings across the city.

The death of Mr Apet in Springvale on Sunday means five people have been killed as a result of the four shootings.

The anti-gang Echo taskforce has been investigating the first shooting, which occurred about 10pm last Friday at the Melbourne Pavilion on the corner of Racecourse Road and Stubbs Road in Kensington.

Three men were shot outside the Kensington venue, including Craigieburn father Ben Togiai, 30, who died at the scene.

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On Friday night, NSW Police arrested 25-year-old Mikhael Myko and 27-year-old Abdullah El Nasher during dramatic scenes at a Bankstown apartment block, in which Mr El Nasher jumped from a balcony to avoid police.

Mikhael Myko, 25, had an extradition hearing at the Parramatta Local Court on Sunday afternoon and was remanded into the custody of Victoria Police.

Two days after the shooting in Kensington, the body of Mitat Rasimi, was found riddled with bullets after he crashed his car in Dawn Avenue, Dandenong.

Then on March 4, Ali Ali, 28, and Deniz Hasan, 40, were found dead 500 metres apart after being shot in a quiet court in Meadow Heights about 10pm.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au

With Erin Pearson

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