19:49 EDT, 4 July 2021
Pictured: Jakob Opacic, 28,who died on Friday
Two men have been charged with murder after an NRL star s brother died in an alleged hit-and-run after an impassioned argument erupted outside a jail.
Jakob Opacic died instantly when he came off his motorbike on Nerang-Murwillumbah Road on the Gold Coast at about 10.15am on Friday.
It is understood the 28-year-old, who is the brother of Parramatta Eels centre and former Brisbane Broncos star Tom Opacic, had been visiting a potential lover on the day of her release from Numinbah Correctional Centre.
Police say he was involved in a heated verbal exchange with two men outside the facility moments before he died 3km down the road - and are investigating whether one was the woman s current partner.
01:24 EDT, 5 July 2021
Pictured: Jakob Opacic, 28,who died on Friday
A jilted ex-lover vowed to kill love rival Jakob Opacic, brother of NRL player Tom Opacic, before he was found fatally injured on the side of the road, court documents reveal.
Steven Dale Latter, 28, and Benjamin Charles Johnson, 29, both faced Southport Magistrate Court on Monday charged with murder.
Police will allege the pair were waiting on Nerang-Murwillumbah Road on Friday - the day Johnson s former partner Rheannon Rowe was released from Numinbah Correctional Centre in the Gold Coast hinterland.
Police allege Ms Rowe was met by her family and her new partner Jake Opacic, whose brother Tom plays for the Parramatta Eels, just after 10am.
Man charged over hit-and-run death of NRL player’s brother
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A man has been charged following the suspected hit-and-run death of Jakob Opacic, brother of current Parramatta Eels centre and ex-Brisbane Bronco Tom Opacic.
Emergency services were called to the crash on Nerang Murwillumbah Road at Natural Bridge in the Gold Coast hinterland about 10.15am on Friday.
Crash victim Jakob Opacic.
Credit:Facebook
Mr Opacic, 28, was declared dead at the scene after he came off his motorbike about 3 kilometres south of Numinbah Correctional Centre.
Police probe whether motorcyclist deliberately hit, killed by driver
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A motorbike rider has died after he was hit by a vehicle on the Gold Coast, with criminal detectives investigating whether the motorcyclist was deliberately targeted by another driver.
Emergency services were called to the crash on Nerang Murwillumbah Road in Natural Bridge in the Gold Coast hinterland about 10.15am on Friday.
The motorcyclist – a 28-year-old man from the Moreton Bay suburb of Bracalba, north of Brisbane – was declared dead at the scene by paramedics.