Fresh shooting details as Dezi Freeman to be identified
The gun Dezi Freeman pulled in her final moments belonged to one of the officers the self-proclaimed sovereign citizen executed while authorities waited for her body to be officially identified.
Police tracked the 56-year-old to a rural property at Thologolong, near Walwa on the Victoria-NSW border.
Freeman was wrapped in what appeared to be a blanket when he emerged from a container-like structure Monday morning after a three-hour standoff with heavily armed police officers.
Victoria Police Chief Mike Bush said he watched footage of Freeman pulling the gun from under the cloth and pointing it at police.
“I can now confirm that this is a police firearm and we believe it was taken from one of our officers who was killed on 26 August,” he told reporters in Wodonga on Monday evening.
It is unknown whether Freeman fired the gun before multiple officers fired their weapons.
Freeman was wanted for the fatal shootings of Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart, who were among the police team that served an arrest warrant at his home in the small town of Porepunkah in late August.
The facility is about 150 kilometers from where Freeman was shot and killed.
Officers returned to duty on Sunday, but Mr. Bush would not confirm whether they had received a tip about Freeman’s whereabouts.
Police are investigating how the fugitive evaded capture for 216 days and are looking into the possibility of getting help.
“We would love to know who it was, if anyone, but I’m sure some of them actually helped him get from Porepunkah to where he is,” Mr. Bush said.
Mr Bush said Mr Freeman’s appearance had changed slightly since he was last confirmed to have fled into dense bush on the day of the shooting.
“His hair was a little longer and he had a beard,” he said.
State’s Attorney Liberty Sanger visited the scene Monday to formally confirm the man’s identity.
The commissioner said he expects the process to take 24 to 48 hours.
“This will take some time as the deceased is still in the area,” Bush said.
“We’re sure who that person is.”
Prime Minister Jacinta Allan was pleased police had ended the manhunt and declared a “bad man” dead.
“It’s over in terms of the operation, but it will never be over for those families,” he said.
Police Union secretary Wayne Gatt said the memory of the police officers who lost their lives would live on forever.
“The memory of cowards fades quickly, but with heroes it lives on forever,” he said.
Hundreds of police from across Australia joined the search for Freeman in challenging conditions including snow, heat and dense bush in the mountainous terrain.
In December, investigators announced they were shifting their search efforts to finding the killer’s body.
Victoria Police has offered a $1 million reward and the possibility of compensation for information leading to his capture; this was the largest financial offer in state history to facilitate an arrest.
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