Police surge into remote township in manhunt for accused triple murderer Julian Ingram
Updated ,first published
Warning: This story contains names and images of deceased Indigenous people.
Even by country standards, Mount Hope is an isolated place.
The red dirt roads that lead there from Lake Cargelligo, about 100 kilometers to the south, are surrounded by bushes so dense they are impassable by car.
Only a handful of residents live within walking distance of the local pub, the Royal Hotel. Others in the area, which is too small for locals to recognize it as a town, live on vast estates spanning thousands of square kilometres. According to the 2021 census, Mount Hope had a population of only 16.
On a typical weekend, little happens in Mount Hope. But on Sunday the area became the center of a massive search for suspected triple murderer Julian Ingram.
In the early morning hours, dozens of police officers, including members of a heavily armed tactical operations unit, descended on Mount Hope after a member of the public reported seeing Ingram at a property in the area.
On Monday, search crews continued to focus on the remote area and moved from property to property trying to find the 37-year-old.
Ingram is accused of shooting dead his heavily pregnant ex-partner Sophie Quinn, 24, and her friend John Harris, 32, in Lake Cargelligo’s Bokhara Street, then going to Walker Street and killing Sophie’s aunt Nerida Quinn, 50.
NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Andrew Holland said a number of properties were under surveillance in Mount Hope on Monday.
“There are multiple sheds, properties and homes within each of these facilities, and our plan is to strategically clear these facilities,” he said.
“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.
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.
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.
The alleged triple murder comes at a time when debates over firearms laws and efforts to combat domestic violence continue.
Thousands of attendees at an Invasion Day rally in Sydney’s Hyde Park on Monday raised their fists in solidarity, while Aboriginal activist Paul Silva observed a moment of silence as posters of the victims were held aloft.
“These people you see here were deeply loved and deserved so much better,” Silva said..
“May our ancestors guide them on their next journey into the Dreamtime. May our ancestors comfort their loved ones, their communities, and all those affected by this tragic event.”
Kaleb Macqueen, 19, the sole survivor of the alleged shooting, said: Nine News On Sunday, Ingram laughed as he shot and wounded Nerida 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.
NSW shadow attorney general Damien Tudehope has suggested greater electronic monitoring of alleged domestic violence offenders.
Responding on Monday, NSW Premier Chris Minns said police were investigating the circumstances surrounding Ingram’s decision to grant bail but did not rule out future changes to the law.
“It’s best to let the police investigation play out first, but we’ve made major changes to domestic violence laws… because we’ve seen shocking crimes in society and a change is needed,” Minns said.
Jack Gramenz is a breaking news reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.
