- 5 months ago
WATCH: Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush and Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan hold a press conference in Wangaratta. 29.8.25
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00:00My purpose for being here today, firstly, is to acknowledge the very good members of the Victoria Police
00:07who have joined the investigation and the search for this offender.
00:13Very important that as the Chief Commissioner that I'm here to support our people.
00:18It was also important that I went to the Forward Command Base to get an appreciation of the search and the investigation that goes with it.
00:26To make sure our people have every resource that they need.
00:32I can assure you from them that they do have every resource they require to locate the person responsible for this horrific homicide.
00:47We have over 450 police officers dedicated to this task.
00:54Some are involved in search, some are involved in investigation, some are involved in supporting, and many are involved in community reassurance.
01:06We're also joined in that operation by Ambulance Victoria, the local fire department, and we're really, really appreciative of their efforts.
01:20I can assure the public that there is a very professional and coordinated operation in place here to bring this to a safe conclusion.
01:33I would also like to further acknowledge the devastating loss of our two officers, and our injured officer.
01:46In the last few days, we have met with Neil's wife, Lisa, to give her every support.
01:54I've also spoken to the Dean's auntie, who lives in Melbourne, to offer them every support.
02:03I've also met with Mr Evans, Peter Evans, he's had one operation, he will have another, he will recover, he's in good hands.
02:16We are not in a position yet to announce funeral arrangements, but those arrangements are progressing very well, and we'll be able to share that with you at some point.
02:28My final point is to the local community, to give the locals that assurance that we are not leaving here until this person is in custody.
02:46In fact, if that person is listening, it really is time to lay down your firearms and give yourself up, so that we can all bring this to a safe conclusion.
02:58And this community can get back to what they love to do.
03:04We have many officers out in the field to keep you safe.
03:09Our partners from across other states, if they're not here already, they're on their way to support us.
03:18Australian Federal Police are working with us.
03:20New South Wales Police, South Australia are on their way.
03:25Ontario, ACT, all of our law enforcement colleagues and partners across Australia are leaning into this with us.
03:35They know the impact.
03:36It's not just the Victoria Police that are hurting at the moment, it's the entire
03:42police family. I'm going to now pass you to the Premier.
03:51Thank You Chief Commissioner. Along with the Chief Commissioner and the Minister
03:56for Police Anthony Carbines, we're here today at the Wangaratta Police Station
04:02firstly to pay our respects to the men and women of Victoria Police who work out of this station,
04:08who live in this beautiful regional city and in the wider district and pay our respects
04:14because they've lost friends, colleagues, loved ones on Tuesday and I want to acknowledge
04:20the team here at Wangaratta. I also want to thank them because they are also having lost
04:27colleagues working through that grief. They're here keeping the community safe. It's an operational
04:33station. They're at work keeping the community safe. So I want to thank the team here at the
04:38Wangaratta Police Station and all of the police across the district. It is a close-knit community
04:44here in the northeast. It's a beautiful community. Everyone knows everyone and so whilst there
04:49is a lot of grief across the community right now, there's also men and women in blue who
04:55are going about their job continuing to keep the community safe and for that I give my great
05:00thanks as Premier of Victoria. Also too, as Premier along with the Minister, we've had the opportunity
05:06today to lay a floral tribute in honour of the loss of Neil and Vadim and to thank also them
05:14and recognise their dedicated service to this community and to the wider Victorian community as well.
05:20As we can see, there has been an outpouring of support and sympathy for the loss of these two
05:30strong members of Victoria Police and the floral tributes here demonstrate that and the Minister
05:36and I had the opportunity on behalf of the Victorian community to add that message of support today.
05:43Finally too, we've had the opportunity today to see part of the operational response in action.
05:49So I also want to thank all those members of the Victoria Police, but what we also know is the
05:55wider emergency services family who are deploying every resource. I will leave it to the Chief to
06:02continue to provide those operational updates, but I also add my thanks to people who are working
06:08around the clock, putting every resource and effort behind bringing justice in this instance.
06:14And then finally too, I will also have the opportunity to be meeting with the Mayor of Alpine Shire,
06:20remembering and holding too that there is that community of Pawpunka who are living under this
06:25heavy shadow, but they don't do this alone. They have the support of me, my Government and the wider
06:31community as well. And that's certainly the message I'll be conveying when I meet with the Mayor later
06:36today. On their hand, back to the Chief. Thank you. You may have some questions. I'll see if I will do my
06:44best to answer them. Commissioner, why was it necessary to arrest Desi's wife and Christine
06:49Rob? Were they not cooperating with police? There was search warrants executed last night. People were
06:56interviewed totally and specifically in relation to the homicide investigation. So those searches have been
07:03completed, the interviews have been conducted, those people have been released. There may or may not be
07:09charges that follow, but it would be very inappropriate for me to say anything else at this point.
07:17Do you think Mr Freeman is being aided by anyone in the community?
07:23We are keeping our options open. We are looking at every avenue. If he is being aided
07:31in this escape, whoever is considering aiding him in this escape or avoiding our apprehension,
07:43committing a criminal offence, this person does not deserve to be aided in any way. If any person
07:52knows him or comes in contact with him, they need to encourage him to hand himself in.
07:58So you had on those arrests this morning. Can you confirm the relationship of those three people
08:04with the suspect? Yes, that was the suspect's partner and some.
08:11Has Mr Freeman's phone been active or pinged any towers? That forms part of our investigation and I
08:17won't go into any detail in terms of that. Are you thinking of widening the search area because
08:23you're bringing in so many cops from other states? The search area is already very wide. It will,
08:31the search area will be determined based on intelligence. And again, I'm not going to give
08:38too much away in terms of that. You know, it's quite possible that the suspect at large has access to
08:45technology. So it would be very unwise of me on behalf of my investigation and search team to share
08:55further information. I'm sure you can understand that. What's the logic behind stretching that
09:00that will form part of the investigation? And of course, that forms an offence, which also relates to the search
09:29warrants last night in relation to how someone can be unlawfully in possession of firearms.
09:36Can you provide any clarity about whether or not this is a homemade rifle?
09:41I can't confirm that at the moment. We haven't seized what we believe that the weapons involved
09:46are. That's why we believe he is and remains armed and dangerous.
09:51Is there any information that his family's been in touch with him since Tuesday?
09:54We are examining all lines of inquiry. And again, that forms part of the investigation,
10:02which I'm not willing to share details of.
10:05Just on the search area though, can you tell us about how today's weather is impacting the search?
10:10The weather certainly doesn't help, but our people are very used to working in inclement
10:15conditions. It doesn't help us. And I'm sure it doesn't help the person we're looking for.
10:23The AFP have confirmed that they're joining the search operation. What will they be bringing?
10:27Could you repeat that? I didn't get the first part.
10:29The AFP have confirmed that they're joining the search operation. What are you hoping they'll bring to it?
10:34Well, they're helping us contain the area, keep the area safe. You know,
10:39we've got a lot of people going around a lot of tasks, whether it's the investigation, search.
10:44So the AFP special operators will make sure that everyone else involved in this operation are kept
10:53safe. But they're also deployable to certain situations should the need arise.
10:59Jack Commissioner, just on Freeman's firearm license,
11:02I'm sorry. Had it been removed and then reinstated? And if so, why and how did it get?
11:08My understanding is that it had been revoked, but I'm very happy to make sure that we give you
11:13clarity on that before you go to print or whatever you do.
11:17Just one more on the firearms license. Just going up on what you said earlier,
11:23you said that formed part of the search warrant last night, that issue. Are you able to speak to
11:28whether Mr Freeman had transferred ownership of his firearms to his wife?
11:34I can't go into any detail on that. I'd love to, but I can't, mainly because it forms part of the
11:40investigation and could form part of a prosecution if that does occur.
11:44Chief Commissioner, Freeman has a pretty long history of expressing some pretty radical political
11:49beliefs. He's made some pretty disturbing comments about deaf police officers in the past.
11:53Are police any closer to determining whether or not this will be classified as a suspected terror attack?
11:59That's not something we currently explored.
12:02Is Freeman on the radar of counter-terrorism police as well as other agencies?
12:06I'm not going into that at the moment, but thank you for the question.
12:10Just on the big emergency alerts again, it seems to be, has there been a transition
12:14away from text messages to these, the alerts, the yellow alert for Port Panker and then that
12:20white or blue alert for the larger region? Look, I can't tell you the specific answer to that.
12:25Again, it's something that I'm quite happy to go away and get some clarification on.
12:31Yes, sorry, Chief Commissioner, just as in relation to how the preparation was
12:37for the warrant was served. Did local police request help from special officers in Melbourne
12:43and was that help then rejected? What I can tell you is that that was considered
12:50but it wasn't requested. So they, when they prepare for a search warrant, they'll do a risk assessment.
12:57They will then decide what level of risk is attached to that and what resources require to support that.
13:02They did not consider a request to the special operations group necessary. So what follows is
13:11there was no request, therefore there was no declining of the request.
13:15Right. And was there any attempt to contact the suspect before the warrant
13:24was served to see if he would turn himself in to the police station?
13:27Yes, I know what you're asking there. I don't believe so.
13:31Commissioner, in terms of the locals, the pub, the local pub in town is due to open this afternoon
13:38at four o'clock. Is it safe for the locals to be out and about at the moment?
13:43We're really conscious that people need to go about their lives. We've been in discussion with those
13:49owners. I think we support the opening but we'll be very much in the environment to make sure people are
13:55kept safe. So our message to people is, if you need to go about your business, go about your business,
14:03stay safe, be vigilant and we are there to support you. But if you see anything that you believe is
14:10suspicious or could be this person, please ring triple zero.
14:14Chief, just on the warrant again, sorry. Was it categorised as a level one or two warrant and
14:21what do those threaten that? I don't think we need to go into those details.
14:24Last night, the police were heard to be shouting, come out with nothing in your hands. Was there a
14:30concern that inside this other address with Desi's wife that there may be firearms as well?
14:36Well, we will always assume that. So we have to, we have to follow protocol in terms of that. So that's
14:44the safest way to approach that and we would never assume that there were not firearms in that address.
14:49Have police been receiving much credible intel from the local community as to where about?
14:55The locals have been fantastic. There are certain lines of inquiry that are coming in from the public
15:02that are being assessed. They're all helpful. So we encourage members of the public to tell us
15:09everything they think they need to tell us. Do you have any last questions? Thank you.
15:13Have there been any sightings from members of the public or police? There have been alleged sightings
15:19which we're exploring. We don't, we can't confirm that they are of them, but you know,
15:23if you think you see them, let us know. We'll explore them. Do police think they've seen them?
15:28Can I leave it at that? For those two fallen officers, has that been an offer at the state
15:35funeral? That's a matter for the Premier. Premier, would you like to address that? So thank you.
15:42I don't think I can answer any more of your questions in any detail, so thank you. Yesterday,
15:48along with the Minister and the Chief Commissioner, we met and sat with Neil's partner, Lisa,
15:55and as part of that conversation, we discussed funeral arrangements and the outcome of that
16:01conversation. Remembering these are deeply personal decisions that are made by families that are
16:07grieving. The state will be providing every support to Victoria Police to support the families in the
16:14organisation of the funeral arrangements, recognising that these will be very difficult days for the
16:21family and also the many members of Victoria Police who want to come and show and pay their respects,
16:26their final respects to their fallen colleagues.
16:30Premier, will the resources on the weekend be stretched with these dual protests and then
16:34this massive surge of 400 plus officers?
16:37Yeah. So again, I'll leave the Chief Commissioner to respond to the operational decisions around the
16:45deployment of resources, both here in the North East, responding to activity in the city on the weekend,
16:52but also too, as Victoria Police across the state are continuing to go about their work 24 hours a day,
17:00seven days a week, keeping our communities safe. But I will say this on the proposed marches
17:09that are being promoted around the country this weekend. But as Premier of Victoria, I am proud that
17:15we are a state and a place where people from a whole range of different backgrounds are choosing here to
17:23come and live, to work, to raise their family. And I say this to every single Victorian, that every Victorian
17:32matters. Every Victorian belongs and every Victorian is equal.
17:38Premier, there are reports that people who have organised these marches are sympathetic to far-right ideology,
17:43anti-government ideology. Are you concerned they've been motivated or spurred on to take more action after Tuesday's shooting?
17:50Oh, look, I'm not going to speculate in any way that would be unhelpful to the operations of Victoria Police.
17:59I'm focused. Every ounce of the work we are focused on as a government is supporting the work of Victoria Police,
18:07both in the operational activity that's going on here in the North East, but as I've said already a couple
18:13of times today and over the course of the week, let's remember there are men and women of the Victoria
18:18Police Force who are carrying grief at the loss of loved ones and colleagues, who are putting on that
18:26uniform again each and every day and are going out to work to keep our community safe. And that is who
18:31I am focused on and who I will remain focused on as this operation continues.
18:37Can you give us a bit more detail on what the federal resources are that you've asked for?
18:41Well, in terms of the arrangements with inter-jurisdictional police forces, that would be something for the
18:48chief commissioner to respond to where appropriate. These are matters that are organised between the
18:55police forces. But I did have the opportunity this morning, when I was with the prime minister in
19:01Ballarat, to thank him for the support of the federal police. But also too, what I have received as
19:07premier is a significant number of messages of support from our colleagues around the nation.
19:16People across the nation are standing with the men and women who work here out of Victoria Police's
19:21Wangaratta station. People around the nation are putting their arms around the community of poor
19:26punkah in this very difficult time. And being here today with the minister to lay a floral tribute on
19:32behalf of the Victorian community is also one small way that we can demonstrate that we also put our
19:40arms around the community here and the broader Victoria Police family.
19:45Thank you, Premier. Can I just suggest that I address your original question and that's the last
19:53question we have? So your question is an important one and I would like to say here and now that the
20:01number one priority for the Victoria Police is the hunt for this murderer and we're pouring in over 450
20:09resource to that and every other resource we have. We're also conscious that the Victoria Police have
20:16many other demands and that includes the protest activity this weekend. Our mission there will be to
20:23deploy a large resource also to ensure that those people that are out protesting peacefully are kept
20:33safe. So that too is a priority and we will resource it and we will resource the other demands. But I want to go back to my original
20:43point. The number one priority for the Victoria Police is to find the person who murdered our officers. Thank you.
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