00:00Police have this afternoon charged a 46-year-old North Motton man with murder, attempted murder and aggravated assault.
00:10It's over the death of Tasmania Police Constable Keith Smith in an incident which occurred on Monday morning.
00:19Tasmania Police say the 46-year-old North Motton man faced a bedside court sitting this afternoon at the Launceston General Hospital
00:27where he remains after having surgery on non-life-threatening injuries.
00:32He will face court again at a later date.
00:35The incident on Monday morning it saw Tasmania Police Constable Keith Smith, another officer, two civilians and the Special Operations Group
00:44arrive at a property in North Motton which is in the northwest of Tasmania with a court-ordered repossession warrant.
00:51Constable Smith, the other officer and civilians made their way up the driveway.
00:56We don't know a lot about how the incident unfolded at this stage but what we do know is that sometime between,
01:03according to Police Commissioner Donna Adams, we know that sometime between leaving his car and approaching the front of the house,
01:10Constable Keith Smith was allegedly shot.
01:14It was upon hearing those shots that the Special Operations Group officers engaged and they made their way up the driveway
01:20and shot the alleged offender in the hand before taking him into custody and he has remained since then in the Launceston General Hospital.
01:28It's been a really difficult week here in Tasmania with an outpouring of support to the loved ones and friends of Constable Smith
01:35as well as the wider Tasmania police force.
01:38It's the first death of a serving police officer on duty since 1922 and Police Commissioner Adams has put out some remarks tonight
01:49with the release about these charges, thanking all of those who've played a part in the investigation
01:54as well as community members for the outpouring of support.
01:57So it's certainly been a difficult week here in Tasmania.
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