Over 100 police and volunteers including specialists from Victoria and interstate will join detectives from Taskforce Summit this week to conduct a significant targeted search of the Mount Buffalo National Park as part of the ongoing search for wanted fugitive Desmond Freeman.
The search commences today, Monday 2 February, and is scheduled to go for five days.
Police from the Search and Rescue Squad, PORT, Taskforce VIPER, Critical Incident Response Team, Dog Squad and Drone Unit will work alongside local police and Taskforce Summit investigators during the search. A NSW Police cadaver dog will also be used.
In December last year, police spent five days systematically searching 0.886 km2 in thick bush and heavy terrain conducting line searches and clearing caves.
This week's search focuses on an area adjoining the location of that previous search.
Both of these searches are based on intelligence derived from information police obtained in relation to a gunshot heard a short time after the fatal incident at Freeman's Rayner Track property.
On 5 November last year, detectives from Taskforce Summit conducted a range of firearms tests in the vicinity of Barrett Lane and Rayner Track as part of their enquiries into the reports of a gunshot in the area about 11.45am on the 26 August.
Taskforce Summit is based in the Great Alpine area and is comprised of detectives from Crime Command, including specialist resources from the Fugitive Squad, Armed Crime Squad and VIPER Taskforce, and is supported by Special Operations Group, Search and Rescue Squad, and local Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems members.
The Homicide Squad continues to lead the investigation into the murders of Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart.
The officers were executing a search warrant as part of an investigation by the Wangaratta Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Investigation Team.
They were confronted by Freeman at his property about 10.30am on 26 August, resulting in the two officers being fatally shot.
A third officer was seriously injured after being shot in the lower body and continues to recover.
Since then, hundreds of Victoria Police officers and specialist resources from across Victoria, Australia and New Zealand have been tirelessly searching Porepunkah and surrounding areas at any one time for Freeman.
Extensive searches of the park have also been conducted from the air, supported by Victoria Police Air Wing and other specialist support.
Detectives have investigated over 2000 pieces of intelligence, including information received from the public.
Despite these extensive searches and enquiries, police have not located Desmond Freeman.
Freeman was last seen at his Porepunkah property on 26 August shortly after the fatal shooting, wearing dark green (khaki) tracksuit pants, dark green rain jacket, brown Blundstone boots and reading glasses.
There remains nothing to indicate that Freeman is being assisted by a specific person, however given the difficult terrain and the requirement for various supplies this remains a possibility.
Police are also open to the possibilities that he remains at large alone, or is dead as a result of self-harm or misadventure.
Anyone who sees Freeman should phone triple zero (000) immediately and not approach him.
Victoria Police will continue to maintain an enhanced presence in the local Porepunkah and Mount Buffalo National Park areas.
A reward of up to $1 million remains for information leading to Freeman's arrest.
Anyone with any information on Freeman's location, or anything the community notices at the Mount Buffalo National Park should be reported to Crime Stoppers Victoria via 1800 333 000 or www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
Quotes attributable to Detective Inspector Adam Tilley, Taskforce Summit:
"This incident, which resulted in the deaths of Neal and Vadim, continues to have a significant impact on both Victoria Police and the Porepunkah community more broadly.
"It remains our number one priority to locate Freeman and the extensive and systematic searches conducted over the past five months are testament to this.
"The same three possibilities remain open to us - Freeman is either dead, being harboured, or has gotten out from the area and surviving alone. At this time there is no intelligence to move us away from these possibilities or to make any one the more likely scenario, so we have to keep an open mind.
"There is no doubt that everyone involved wants an answer and I want to reaffirm that Victoria Police remains committed to doing everything we can to locate Desmond Freeman and get that answer.
"We've also been clear from the start that we believe information from the community will be crucial in resolving this matter. This could be anything you have heard about Freeman's actions on the day or the shooting or his current whereabouts, or anything you may have seen in the Mount Buffalo National Park area that you think is suspicious or could be connected to Freeman.
"The $1M reward remains on offer for information that leads to Freeman being located - this is a life changing amount of money for anyone.
"If you do have any information, then I urge you to contact police or Crime Stoppers and as always, this can be done confidentially.
"Police will continue to conduct targeted, intelligence-based searches such as this one and we will also have a presence in the local community for the foreseeable future.
"What we want most is to see this through to resolution and hopefully provide answers and some level of comfort to Neal and Vadim's families, the other police impacted and the wider community. We will continue to do everything we can to achieve that."
