Unanswered Questions Spark Debate After the Shooting of Dezi Freeman: A Community Seeks Justice

Following the most extensive manhunt in Victoria’s history, Dezi Freeman was fatally shot by police nearly 150 kilometers from where he vanished into dense bushland seven months prior.

Authorities had long presumed Freeman was deceased, conducting searches of the rugged terrain in Mount Buffalo National Park with cadaver dogs just last month.

However, it was revealed on Monday that Freeman had managed to survive the inhospitable conditions, traveling undetected to a location nearly two hours northeast, despite a staggering $1 million reward for information leading to his arrest.

Freeman, who identified as a “sovereign citizen,” was being sought in connection with the deadly shootings of police officers Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart. The incident occurred when officers attempted to serve a warrant at his Porepunkah home on August 26.

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush informed the media on Monday that Freeman was shot after a tense three-hour standoff that commenced before dawn.

While his death ends the heavily-resourced operation to capture him, and offers the families of Thompson and de Waart Hottart an opportunity to find closure, many questions remain about what happened.

Here’s what we know, and what we don’t.

Where was Freeman hiding?

Freeman was found in a shipping container-like structure in Thologolong, a remote community near Walwa, about 1km from the NSW border.

A makeshift campsite appeared to have been set up outside the container with two chairs under a shelter.

The nearest regional centre, Albury-Wodonga, is more than an hour’s drive away.

The property is owned by Richard Sutherland, a man in his 70s who had been living with relatives in Tasmania for several months, the Guardian and ABC reported.

There’s no evidence to suggest Sutherland knew Freeman or was aware the fugitive was residing on his property.

His cousin Rocky Sutherland, who oversees cattle on a neighbouring farm, told the Guardian he had believed the property to be vacant, and was shocked to hear what had happened on Monday.

“I reckon [Freeman’s] just staked it out to see if there was anyone there. There’s obviously no one living there,” he said.

Bush revealed that officers had been on the scene for more than 24 hours before Freeman was shot.

What condition was he in?

The police chief said Freeman was given the opportunity to surrender peacefully, but he chose not to.

Freeman is understood to have emerged from the hideout wrapped in what appeared to be a blanket.

“He then pulled the firearm from underneath that and presented it at our people,” Bush said.

Freeman’s appearance had changed since he was last seen, according to the police commissioner.

“His hair was a little bit longer and he had a beard,” Bush said.

How did he get there?

Little is known about how Freeman managed to journey to Thologolong.

The journey would have taken more than 30 hours on foot.

During his time on the run, a large bushfire burned through the Walwa-Mt Lawson area — located between Porepunkah and the location where Freeman was found — spreading through 120,000 hectares in January and February.

In the early days of the search, he would have also faced freezing nighttime temperatures and challenging weather in harsh terrain.

Bush said it would have been extremely difficult for Freeman to arrive in Thologolong without assistance.

Could Freeman have received help?

Investigators are exploring this possibility.

“I doubt he got [to Thologolong] on his own,” Bush said in a Nova radio interview on Tuesday. “He has a wide network of friends and associates within that sovereign citizen group. So we’re going to track backwards, work backwards from yesterday to work out who did assist him.”

Neil Sutherland, whose brother reportedly owned the property where Monday’s shooting occurred, said his sibling was not a sovereign citizen, had no connection whatsoever to Freeman, and was shocked by the news on Monday.

The ABC said Neil, coincidentally, was one of the first people to contact the broadcaster on Monday morning to report hearing a helicopter, loudspeaker and possibly a gunshot.

Bush said police had “no doubt that other people come and go” from the property and investigators need to speak to those individuals.

“We need to establish what they knew and who else has assisted the deceased and enabled them to get to where they got,” he said.

Earlier this month, Victoria Police announced they would not charge Freeman’s wife, Amalia, with obstruction of police.

Amalia Freeman was taken into custody days after the Porepunkah shooting, but she was released without charge.

Were police tipped off?

Reports have circulated that police were tipped off to Freeman’s whereabouts, however, authorities have not confirmed this.

When asked on Monday if the operation was the result of a tip-off, Bush said “it was the result of a very diligent, professional investigation”.

Bush said any information about any reward would be kept confidential.

Did police act reasonably in shooting Freeman?

Bush said footage of Freeman’s final moments showed him pulling a gun from underneath the cloth he was draped in, and pointing it towards police.

He said it was a police firearm, believed to have been taken from one of the officers killed in August.

After reviewing the footage, Bush said, he felt the shooting was “justified”.

Aerial images of Freeman’s rural hideout showed a heavily armed police “BearCat” vehicle with a large pole appearing to breach the container.

Former homicide detective Charlie Bezzina told the Australian Associated Press this may have been done to allow gas into the container to draw Freeman out.

In a radio interview on Tuesday, Bush said officers spoke with Freeman during the three-hour standoff, and “he said enough during that conversation to confirm he was the person we were looking for”.

The state coroner is working to formally identify the body, with confirmation expected by Wednesday.

— With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.

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