Two arrested in northeast Victoria as police investigate movements of fugitive killer Dezi Freeman
Two people have been arrested as investigators continue to unravel the movements of fugitive cop killer Dezi Freeman.
Police said a man and a woman were arrested at two properties in north-east Victoria at 7am today as part of an investigation into Freeman’s movements following the Porepunkah shooting last August.
Victoria Police confirmed the pair were colleagues of Freeman’s and not members of his family.
A police spokesman said: “The investigation is ongoing and we are therefore not in a position to provide further details at this time.”
Freeman was killed in a volley of gunfire on Monday after being on the run for seven months.
Police raided a north-east Victorian rural property at Thologolong, near the NSW border, where a shipping container and what appeared to be a caravan were stored inside. The property was more than 150 kilometers from Freeman’s home.
The long manhunt ended in a hail of bullets outside the bunker; It was understood that the fugitive fired two shots, and then the police returned fire up to 20 times.
Freeman eventually emerged from the container, wrapped in a blanket and holding a gun; detectives later confirmed it was a firearm taken from one of the slain officers.
Officers from Victoria’s Special Operations Group spent nearly three hours trying to persuade Freeman to surrender peacefully before gunshots rang out.
Victoria Police Chief Mike Bush said Freeman “was given every opportunity to resolve (the situation) peacefully.” Investigators were tracking a vehicle traveling to and from the 56-year-old man’s hideout before the fatal shooting, which occurred around 8:30 a.m. Monday.
Freeman had previously killed Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart-Hottart and injured a third police officer, before disappearing into thick bush; it was a pursuit that triggered the largest tactical police operation in Australian history.
Police had offered a $1 million reward for information leading to his capture, but it remains unclear whether anyone claimed it.
More to come.
