Australian police shot dead a fugitive wanted for killing two officers, ending a massive seven-month manhunt in remote bushland.
MELBOURNE: Australian police have shot dead a fugitive wanted for killing two police officers, ending a seven-month manhunt for one of the country’s most-wanted criminals.
Police Commissioner Mike Bush said officers tracked Desmond Freeman to a caravan on a very remote property in rural Victoria. He was shot after refusing pleas to surrender during a standoff.
“Everything I know at this point tells me that this shooting was justified,” Bush told reporters. “There was an opportunity for him to surrender peacefully, which he did not.”
Freeman fled into dense bushland last August after shooting and killing two officers who came to search his home in Porepunkah. A third officer was wounded in the incident.
Hundreds of police pursued the 56-year-old through rugged terrain in one of Australia’s largest manhunts. The operation involved up to 450 officers at its peak.
Local resident Jasmine Teese said the property in Thologolong where Freeman was found was completely off the grid. “I honestly don’t think it’s a place you just stumble across,” she told AFP.
The property owner had been away for several weeks and police said they had yet to speak to him. Another local, cattle farmer Mike Gadd, said it was “hard to believe” Freeman had remained undetected for so long.
Freeman, known as “Dezi”, was described by local media as a conspiracy theorist and member of the anti-authority “sovereign citizen” movement. Court documents show he once referred to police as “frigging Nazis” and “terrorist thugs” during a speeding case.
Police believed he may have evaded capture with help from locals sympathetic to his views. “It would be very difficult for him to get to where he was without assistance,” Bush said.
Authorities offered a AU$1 million (RM2.72 million) reward for information leading to his capture. Helicopters, dog squads and reinforcements from New Zealand were dispatched during the search.
Freeman killed 59-year-old detective Neal Thompson and 35-year-old senior constable Vadim De Waart. The Police Association of Victoria said the focus should remain on the fallen officers.
“Today, we won’t reflect on the loss of a coward,” the association stated. “We will remember the courage and bravery of our fallen members.”
The state coroner will now confirm the identity of the body and the cause of death. The reason for the original search warrant on Freeman’s home has not been publicly released.
The Sun Malaysia
