A man who was gunned down at home and died in front of his family after Christmas was the victim of a targeted murder related to his drug activity, senior police believe.
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Zachery 'Zac' Davies-Scott - a 25-year-old Heddon Greta man known locally as 'Donnie' - was at his Traders Way home just before 11pm on December 27 when a group of people stormed the house and shot him dead.
Mr Davies-Scott died in front of his pregnant fiance, with his two small children, parents and grandparents in the home.
The State Crime Command's Homicide Squad and Hunter Valley Police District detectives are investigating the murder and were in the Coalfields region yesterday appealing for information about a white SUV seen in the area, which is believed to be linked to the shooting.
The vehicle was caught on CCTV being driven erratically on Main Road at Heddon Greta just after the fatal attack.
Homicide Squad commander Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty told reporters in Cessnock on Tuesday the shooting was a "horrendous, callous, cold-blooded murder".
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He said police believed Mr Davies-Scott's death was linked to his drug activities and detectives were canvassing his associates and looking into any possible conflicts the 25-year-old father had run into during the lead-up to the shooting.
Detective Superintendent Doherty said Mr Davies-Scott's family has been co-operating with police.
"Whatever Zac may have been involved with, he didn't deserve to be shot dead in his home," he said.
"This was a home where his parents were, his grandparents were - he had two toddlers aged three and four in the house at the time - and he died with his pregnant fiance witnessing his death.
"The parents are decent people - and the grandparents - who have seen something horrendous. They've seen their son shot in [his] own home.
"This is a really difficult investigation but we're determined to be in the Hunter for as long as it takes."
Police believe at least four people were involved in the break-in and shooting, but others may have helped.
The white SUV depicted in the CCTV footage released on Tuesday has not yet been found and detectives are calling for anyone with information that could help track down the vehicle to contact them.
Detective Superintendent Doherty said it was likely anyone who saw the SUV at the time would remember it, given the wild way it was being driven - overtaking a van on the inside shoulder of a single lane road.
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