Police surge into remote township in manhunt for accused triple murderer Julian Ingram

January 26, 2026 — 9:48

Warning: This story contains names and images of deceased Indigenous people.

Police searching for an allegedly armed and dangerous man accused of murdering three people in western NSW are moving from property to property as they search the remote town where the man was likely last seen.

Police officers are rushing to Mount Hope following reports that 37-year-old Julian Ingram was seen there over the weekend. Residents in the search area were urged to stay in their homes and visitors and campers to leave the area.

Ingram is accused of shooting dead his heavily pregnant ex-partner Sophie Quinn, 24, and her friend John Harris, 32, on Bokhara Street in Lake Cargelligo, then going to Walker Street and killing Sophie’s aunt Nerida Quinn, 50.

NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Andrew Holland said on Monday that several properties were under surveillance at Mount Hope, about an hour northwest of Lake Cargelligo.

“There are multiple sheds, properties and homes within each of these facilities, and our plan is to strategically clear these facilities,” he said.

The search for 37-year-old Julian Ingram continues at an area at Mount Hope, north of Lake Cargelligo in western NSW.

“Considering [alleged] “The criminal is considered armed and dangerous, we are using the tactical operations team,” Holland said.

Rescue and bomb disposal units, drone teams and other aircraft, highway patrol and general duty police officers from across the region are also in Mount Hope to assist in the search.

Holland did not say how many properties had already been cleared so as not to reveal the search method police were still working on.

“We have a lot of property that hasn’t been searched and cleaned yet,” Holland said.

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Andrew Holland.Kate Geraghty

Police have already cleared properties in Cargelligo Lake, Euabalong and Murrin Bridge, an Indigenous community where Ingram often visited friends.

Holland suggested that residents who do not feel safe in the search area should stay in their homes.

“But they are still not in isolation. They can still move freely in the area.

“My suggestion for people camping in the area or just visiting is that it’s probably time to go home,” Holland said.

Police prepare to search a property in Mount Hope after a possible sighting of Julian Ingram.Kate Geraghty

Holland stated that the search conditions were not ideal and that the search for Ingram, also known as Pierpoint, would continue “with current intensity” in the coming days.

“The temperature is expected to be around 45 degrees today, but still the heat will not stop us,” he said.

Kaleb Macqueen, 19, the sole survivor of the alleged shooting, said: Nine News On Sunday, Ingram laughed as he shot and wounded the elder Quinn.

“He was holding his neck and laughing and [allegedly] He took a good shot to the head and was gone.

“It was fight or flight; I just had to save myself, I couldn’t do anything to Nerida anyway. If I had gone near her I probably would have died. [her]he said.

Macqueen suffered serious injuries to his head, arm, shoulder and leg and was taken to Canberra Hospital for treatment.

The attack prompted a warning from Domestic Violence NSW that the justice system was operating in a vacuum, blinding it to the risks posed by allegations of repeat or increasing domestic violence offenders.

Court records show Ingram has been granted six AVOs since 2014, protecting five people, including Sophie Quinn.

Published images Nine News It allegedly showed Ingram in a knife fight outside Macqueen’s home, weeks before the shooting.