Australian police shoot suspected double cop killer after seven-month manhunt

Officers in Victoria say a man believed to be Dezi Freeman was killed following an hours-long standoff at a rural property in the state’s north-east on Monday morning.

Formal identification is still ongoing.

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Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said the development could bring some closure after what he described as a “tragic and terrible event”.

Freeman had been on the run since August last year, when two police officers were shot dead at his property in the small town of Porepunkah.

Police had attended the address as part of an investigation into alleged sex offences when senior constables Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart were killed.

Authorities say the suspect fled into dense bushland, triggering an extensive search operation that lasted several months.

On Monday, specialist officers surrounded a remote property where Freeman was believed to be hiding. Police said a man emerged from a structure armed and wrapped in a blanket shortly after 8.30am local time.

Officers attempted to bring the situation to a peaceful resolution, but the man did not surrender. He was then shot dead at the scene.

No police officers were injured during the operation, which will now be subject to a standard independent investigation.

Mr Bush said the families of the two slain officers had been informed, adding that formal identification of the body is expected within 24 to 48 hours.

Police will now investigate whether anyone assisted Freeman while he was evading capture.

"It would be very difficult for him to survive for that long without help,” Mr Bush said. “Anyone found to have been complicit will be held accountable."

In a statement, the Police Association of Victoria described the development as a “step forward”, but said it would not ease the trauma caused by the officers’ deaths.

Freeman, whose real name was Desmond Filby, was linked to the so-called “sovereign citizen” movement, an anti-government ideology that rejects laws and state authority.

Residents in Porepunkah, an alpine town near Mount Buffalo, said he had lived locally with his wife and two children.

Following the killings, police locked down the area, launched a massive manhunt and offered a A$1 million (£525,000) reward for information.

Search teams spent months combing steep, rugged terrain dotted with caves and abandoned mineshafts, as Freeman - who was known to have strong bush survival skills - evaded capture.

Last month, officers intensified their efforts, deploying cadaver dogs amid growing belief that he may have died in the wilderness.

Speaking on Monday, Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said there had been "a lot to suggest" Freeman may have taken his own life, though investigators had continued to keep an open mind.

He added that further details on how police tracked him down would be released in due course.

Freeman had a long history of clashing with authorities, with his sovereign citizen beliefs widely documented in online posts, videos, and court records.

Locals in Porepunkah said his extremist views hardened during the Covid-19 pandemic, amid strict government rules in Victoria.

He had previously called police “terrorist thugs,” tried to arrest a magistrate during court proceedings, and made headlines in 2021 for attempting to have then-Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews tried for treason—a case that was quickly thrown out.

Police knew their visit to Freeman’s property in August would not be straightforward. After a risk assessment, they sent ten officers without specialist backup.

Among them was a local detective nearing retirement. Senior constable Neal Thompson had previously dealt with Freeman and was believed to have built a rapport with him, The Age reported at the time.

Within minutes of arriving, both Thompson and fellow officer Vadim de Waart were shot dead.

Family and friends paid tribute to the officers. Thompson’s partner described him as the “best husband she’d never had,” while De Waart, originally from Belgium, was remembered as always smiling, happy, and trying to make others laugh.