He was an extreme sports influencer with a passion for charity—so how did he end up behind the scope of a sniper rifle, crosshairs locked on one of Australia’s most feared underworld figures?
On a warm summer night at the Perth Motorplex, under the gaze of hundreds, underworld figure Nick Martin was gunned down by a sniper. The killing sparked one of Australia’s largest manhunts, drawing in the Federal Police, Interpol, and the FBI. When police finally made an arrest, the suspect was nothing like expected — a coffee van owner and extreme sports adventurer. Now, as he prepares to testify against a leading bikie, documentarian Jake Blackburn unravels how a big-hearted base jumper ended up behind a sniper’s scope — and what his future holds.
I’m a Perth-based filmmaker passionate about all aspects of storytelling, from camera work to directing. I was a key Shooter/Director on Aussie Gold Hunters (Discovery UK) and Co-director on SBS’s Are You Addicted to Technology. My camera work features in acclaimed SBS and ABC docs like Secrets of Our Cities and Is Australia Sexist?. My short doc The Tale of Mr. Kimberley won Best WA Short at Cinefest Oz and was nominated at SXSW Sydney.