Australian police have shot and killed Dezi Freeman after the double-murderer spent seven months on the run.
A well-known conspiracy theorist, Freeman gunned down two police officers on his property in the small Victorian town of Porepunkah last August, before fleeing into dense bushland and evading extensive searches.
Victoria Police say a man was shot dead after an hours-long standoff at a rural property in the state's north-east on Monday morning. Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said the man is believed to be Freeman, 56, but formal identification is still underway.
Today an evil man is dead, said Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan. It's over. Police surrounded a building described as a cross between a shipping container and a long caravan on a rural property around 5:30 local time.
After three hours and multiple police pleas, a man believed to be Freeman came outside and was shot dead. Details are still being confirmed, Bush told reporters, but he believes Freeman emerged wrapped in a blanket and armed with a gun, possibly one taken from one of the slain officers back in August.
Our ultimate goal was to arrest the person, Bush said. There was an opportunity for him to surrender peacefully but he did not. No officers were hurt during the operation, police said, which will be investigated, as is standard in police shootings.
The squad sent to Freeman's property on 26 August was there to search it over an investigation into sex offences, when two senior constables - Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart - were killed by Freeman. Their families were the first to be told about Freeman's death, Bush said, adding that it would take 24 to 48 hours to confirm the identity of the body.
Investigators believe Freeman was helped while on the run, and detectives will now focus on working out who gave him aid, Bush added. It would be very difficult for him to get to where he was... without assistance, Bush said. If anyone was complicit, they will be held accountable.
In a statement, the Police Association of Victoria said Freeman's death was a step forward - but not quite closure. It doesn't lessen the trauma, give back the futures that were callously stolen or lessen the collective fear and grief that this tragic event has instilled in police and the wider public, the statement said.
Freeman, whose real name was Desmond Filby, was a self-described sovereign citizen, part of an anti-government movement that rejects authority and laws. He called police terrorist thugs, tried to arrest a magistrate during court proceedings, and made headlines in 2021 with an attempt to have then-Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews tried for treason - a case which was thrown out.
Police had expected their search for Freeman last August wouldn't be a straightforward interaction. After risk assessments, they opted not to request specialist police support, sending ten officers to Freeman's property. Among them was a local detective from a nearby town who was nearing retirement. Thompson was thought to have built rapport with Freeman, but within minutes of arriving at the property, he was shot dead, alongside De Waart.
This tragic event and the ensuing manhunt have raised questions regarding the rise of anti-government conspiracy theorists in Australia, prompting discussions on efficacy of law enforcement measures against such groups.
