Millionaire Australia developer Ron Medich jailed for ordering killing of Scots businessman Michael McGurk

He was in April found guilty of directing the 2009 murder of 45-year-old father-of four Michael McGurk, originally from the Gorbals area in Glasgow, and for organising intimidation of his widow, Kimberley.

Outside the courtroom, Mr McGurk's widow Kimberley, who has waited almost nine years for the man responsible for the half-a-million dollar hit to be held responsible, stood in front of her children and declared: "Today is a great day for justice.

"It is through sheer determination that we have got the result today.

"The damage to my family will never be repaired, but the result today will allow my family to move forward."

Wife of Scottish property developer Michael McGurk tells of moment he was gunned down outside his home in Australia

Mr McGurk was gunned down in front of his young son as he got out of his Mercedes in the driveway of his Sydney mansion in September 2009.

In sentencing him to a maximum of 39 years in jail for both the murder and the intimidation, NSW Supreme Court Justice Geoffrey Bellew said that Medich's actions in ordering and financing the murder was an "abhorrent and heinous crime". The earliest date Medich will be eligible for parole is February 26, 2048.

The judge also said that Medich was "breathtakingly callous" when he organised the intimidation of Mrs McGurk a year after he had orchestrated her husband's "execution-style murder".

Justice Bellew described the "catastrophic" effect that Mr McGurk's violent death had on his wife and four children who were aged between eight and 12 at the time of the murder.

Mrs McGurk and her children sat with homicide detectives to hear the sentence.

During the trial, the Crown prosecutor said that Medich and Mr McGurk had once been close business partners but had fallen out over a number of soured business and property deals.

She said by early 2009, Medich had developed a “strong desire” to have Mr McGurk permanently removed from his life as the two were embroiled in a number of messy legal action suits, with each accusing the other of owing millions of dollars.

The jury were told that Medich had paid a total of $500,000 for Mr McGurk's murder and the intimidation of his widow.

The jury determined that Medich's right-hand man Fortunato "Lucky" Gattellari was telling the truth when he claimed that Medich was "the big boss" who had ordered, and paid for, the murder.

Gattellari, 68, a former professional lightweight boxer and one-time Qantas steward was due to be released from prison earlier this year after serving a non-parole period of 7½ years for being an accessory before the fact to the 2009 contract killing.

He had received a substantial discount on his sentence for his role in organising the murder on behalf of his boss. However, his parole was not granted as he has since been charged with trying to extort $15 million from Medich in order to alter his evidence.

Three other men have been jailed over the killing but police have never been able to prove who actually pulled the trigger.

Medich went on trial last year but a jury failed to reach a verdict in the high-profile case.

A second trial kicked off in January, with a jury finding him guilty of both crimes.

Mr McGurk made international headlines in 2007 when he unsuccessfully tried to sue the Sultan of Brunei over an alleged $8 million agreement to buy a 400-year-old gold-lined miniature Koran.

A property developer who emigrated to Australia in 2003, Mr McGurk lived in Sydney with his wife Kimberley and their children, Lachlan, Mia, Nicola and Luc.