After being on the run for seven months, Australian fugitive Dezi Freeman is believed to have been fatally shot by police.
In August, Freeman, aged 56, shot and killed Detective Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart at his property in Porepunkah, a small town in Victoria. The incident occurred during a police search related to a child sex abuse investigation.
Despite extensive searches spanning seven months, Freeman managed to evade capture. The pursuit of Freeman became one of the largest police operations in the country, with officers combing through bushlands and offering a $1 million reward.
On Monday, Victorian Chief Commissioner of Police Mike Bush stated that a man was killed following an armed standoff at a rural property in north-east Victoria. The exact location of the standoff has not been officially confirmed, although reports suggest it took place in Walwa, near Porepunkah and close to the New South Wales border.
While a formal identification process is pending, Bush did not directly confirm that the deceased individual was Dezi Freeman. Nonetheless, he mentioned that the operation marks the end of the pursuit for the fugitive.
According to Bush, the confrontation with Freeman started at around 5:30 am and concluded by 8:30 am. The process to confirm the identity of the deceased may take between 24 to 48 hours, with the families of the slain police officers being the first to be informed of the development.
The Police Association of Victoria, representing police officers, expressed that news of Freeman’s death would be a positive step for its members but acknowledged that the trauma would persist.
Subsequent investigations will focus on determining if anyone aided Freeman during his time as a fugitive.
Following the police-involved shooting, oversight of the investigation will be handled by the Professional Standards Command, and a coronial hearing will be conducted. A statement issued earlier in the day confirmed the coroner’s visit to the scene.
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions.
