Three men have today been charged with aggravated assault, burglary and armed robbery charges as police investigations continue into a serious incident at Coles Bay last Saturday.
Detectives from South East CIB, with the assistance of Northern CIB, Southern and Northern Drugs and Firearms units, Taskforce Raven, the Special Operations Group and other specialist resources, arrested the men on Thursday afternoon during targeted operations in Launceston.
The arrests come after the alleged aggravated armed robbery, involving the theft of firearms and a motor vehicle, and the alleged arson of a house at a rural property on Coles Bay Road on Tasmania's East Coast about 5am on Saturday, 11 July.
Police will allege masked men entered the property, assaulted the sole occupant and forced him to reveal the location of a firearms safe. It is further alleged the homeowner was bound with cable ties, dragged outside, and his house set alight, after which the intruders left the property in a stolen vehicle.
The three men arrested in Launceston were held in custody overnight and are set to appear in the Launceston Magistrates Court this afternoon.
A 31-year-old man, of no fixed address, is charged with:
• Attempted aggravated burglary
• Aggravated burglary
• Aggravated armed robbery
• Aggravated assault
• Arson
• Motor vehicle stealing
• Breach of Family Violence Order
• Drive whilst disqualified
A 31-year-old man from Invermay is charged with:
• Attempted aggravated burglary
• Aggravated burglary
• Aggravated armed robbery
• Aggravated assault
• Arson
• Motor vehicle stealing
• Breach of Family Violence Order
A 29-year-old man from Ravenswood is charged with:
• Attempted aggravated burglary
• Aggravated burglary
• Aggravated armed robbery
• Aggravated assault
• Arson
• Motor vehicle stealing
Further, the three men have also been charged over an incident at the same Coles Bay address on June 25.
As investigations continue, police can confirm 15 licensed firearms were stolen from the property, up from nine firearms initially reported.
Detective Inspector David Gill said these firearms have yet to be recovered, and he is urging anyone with information to report to police, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers Tasmania.
"While there has been a pleasing and significant development in this matter with the arrests of three people overnight, it is still a concern for police that firearms stolen from the property remain unaccounted for," Detective Inspector Gill said.
"Illegal firearms in the community pose a serious threat to public safety and we remain determined, not just as part of this investigation, but in all dealings with criminal groups, to locate and seize unlawful firearms."
Detective Inspector Gill thanked members of the public who provided information over the past six days.
"Tasmania Police allocated significant resources to the investigation of this serious incident," he said.
"Also crucial to our investigations has been information received from members of the public, which enabled police to gather intelligence and proceed with those targeted operations over the past 24 hours."
Detective Inspector Gill said police were conducting further investigations in the state's north.
A 76-year-old man injured during the incident last Saturday morning remains in Royal Hobart Hospital in a stable condition.
Anyone with information about this incident, including CCTV or dashcam footage of suspicious behaviour or vehicles along Coles Bay Road on the morning of Saturday, 11 July, is asked to contact police on 131 444 or report anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
If you have knowledge of unlawful firearms in the community, report to police on 131 44 or call 000 (triple zero) if it is an emergency.
