Rich ‘Dylan’ Choup: Manhunt for drug syndicate’s ‘contract crew’ over alleged murder, torture and kidnappings

Police have released stunning CCTV as they hunt a criminal “contract crew” allegedly behind the murder of a young father, the attempted murder of a man shot through the eye and buried alive and the kidnap and torture of another.

In what has been described as “six days of carnage”, police say a violent gang of offenders with links to a Victorian drug trafficking syndicate carried out a reign of terror that spanned two states.

On Monday, police released a nine and a half minute compilation of CCTV showing multiple men, including of the one shot through the eye, various cars and even a box cutter used to cut off someone’s ear as they try to hunt down those responsible.

Shockingly, the last moments of a man later found brutally murdered were captured as part of the vision.

Rich “Dylan” Choup, 32, whose body was found with a gunshot wound and his ear severed by trail bikers in August 2024, can be seen being slapped in the face in a chilling confrontation with an unknown man.

Strike Force Hallet, set up to investigate Mr Choup’s death, is also investigating the kidnapping and torture of a man in Canley Vale, and the attempted murder of another man in Queensland, all of which occurred between July 19 and July 25, 2024.

Despite the horrific nature of the attacks, the alleged victims are not fully cooperating with police, according to Homicide Squad Commander Joseph Doueihi.

“But they are talking to us, to a certain extent.”

WATCH THE CCTV IN THE PLAYER ABOVE

With two alleged victims suffering severed ears, Det. Supt. Doueihi said it was torture technique that was being seen more often.

“Unfortunately, it’s been seen quite often now that part of their torturing technique is to sever ears and fingers and toes off of people they take hostage, in order to try to have them give them the information that they want,” he said.

“We don’t know what the exact nature of the dispute was here. It may be a case of missing drugs or missing money. If I was a betting man, that’s what I would say the situation was.”

Det. Supt. Doueihi said police believe the offenders had been contracted to carry out the violence.

“We do believe that this particular crew, or crews, were contracted to conduct these activities. We do not believe that they are offshore. We believe they are still within the country.”

NSW Police are cooperating with their counterparts in Victoria and Queensland to track them down.

“The investigation remained somewhat convert for a period of time in order to progress the investigation to where we are now,” Det. Supt. Doueihi said.

“It wasn’t an appropriate time back from July last year to release this information. We are at a stage now where we’re happy to release the information.”

Ear severed in torture ordeal

Police believe a 31-year-old man was tortured and had part of his ear cut off after he was kidnapped from south west Sydney on July 19, 2024

Det. Supt. Doueihi said the man was later released and did not report the incident to police.

However, a search warrant executed at an address in Canley Vale in August that year uncovered a box cutter that police will allege was used to sever the man’s ear.

Police on Monday released CCTV vision of two vehicles they say were used by the offenders: a dark coloured Audi SQ2 and a white Volkswagen Golf, and the box cutter.

“The relevance of the Audi is that it was also later used in the suspicious disappearance of Mr Choup,” Det. Supt. Doueihi said.

“Both vehicles were stolen. Both vehicles had clone number plates. One of the vehicles, the Audi, was recovered later that month, in August, burnt out in Granville.”

Shot in the eye and buried alive

Two days after the alleged kidnapping in Sydney, a 23-year-old man was found with a gunshot wound to his eye, with the bullet lodged in his brain.

The alarm was raised about 5am on July 21, 2024 after the man, covered in dirt, stumbled into a service station in Jimboomba, about an hour north east of the Gold Coast.

The man had asked staff not to call emergency services but collapsed shortly after, prompting them to seek help.

Det. Supt. Doueihi said it was a miracle the 23-year-old had survived.

“The male was shot in the head through the eye, with the bullet lodged in his brain,” he said.

“He was buried in a shallow grave. Unbeknown to the offenders, who believed he was deceased, the male crawled out of the grave and made his way to a nearby service station where an ambulance was called. The man was taken to a nearby hospital, had surgery, and had the bullet removed.”

Police believe the man was lured from NSW to Queensland by a group of males.

Police have released CCTV of a white Hyundai Getz seen at a roadhouse in Nambucca on the Mid North Coast about 5.30am on 20 July, 2024 – the day before the attempted murder of the 23-year-old.

Four male passengers are seen in the vision, one of whom is believed to be the victim, leading police to believe he may have been picked up in NSW and driven to Queensland.

Last moments of murdered dad

About 6.25pm, CCTV captured Mr Choup in what appeared to be an angry confrontation with an unknown man on Railway Parade, who appeared to reprimand and slap him.

Both men are then seen walking towards a grey Audi SQ2.

“For Mr Choup just to sit there and be slapped in public would suggest to me that that person that was speaking to him holds a much higher position in that organisation than he did, Det. Supt Doueihi said.

“There was no resistance there, there was no attempt to flee, there was no attempt to strike back. So, it was quite evident from that footage that Mr Choup was in fear of that person.”

Det. Supt. Doueihi said. a post-mortem showed Mr Choup was fatally shot and also had part of his right ear severed — similar to the first hostage from the first incident.

“We’ve released CCTV in relation to that matter, that relates to the same vehicles that were used a week earlier, of the male that slapped Mr Choup, and of a white Lexus and a white Audi that were used by these male offenders to meet up beforehand.

“I can tell you that we believe that the persons involved are common to all three incidents.”

“They are common across those matters. We believe that these people work for a Victorian drug syndicate.”

Police say two males captured in the CCTV, seen allegedly moving the vehicles before and after Mr Choup’s disappearance are also wanted for questioning.

Det. Supt. Joseph Doueihi said the alleged offenders in the CCTV appeared to be a combination of both Asian and Pacific Islanders.

“And our general appeal is that we’re after anyone that has any information as to the identity of these people depicted in this footage, what their potential involvement...is in these matters.”

Motive for ‘carnage’

Det. Supt. Doueihi said police believed the six days of carnage was carried out by a Victorian drug syndicate after internal friction.

“Motive - we believe ... that it’s very highly likely related to something that’s gone wrong within that drug trafficking syndicate from Melbourne.

“We believe that Mr Choup was an employee of that syndicate and has fallen foul of that syndicate for some reason, we don’t have the exact details.

The public release of the CCTV was a bid by police to confirm the motives behind the three attacks.

“We believe the kidnapping of the first male is also linked to a drug trafficking syndicate and something that’s gone wrong within that drug trafficking syndicate.

“In relation to the attempted murder of the man in Queensland, that unfortunately. . .remains unclear at the moment for the exact motive but there is a possibility that that also is linked to the drug trafficking syndicate.”

Anyone with information about the vehicles or the men in the CCTV are urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.