00:00Earlier this morning we saw a very sombre ceremony here at the police memorial behind me and that was just before we had about 400 riders taking off, revving along St Kilda Boulevard here and heading on an 850 kilometre wall-to-wall remembrance ride to Canberra.
00:22There is a national commemoration that's being held in Canberra tomorrow to honour those slain officers killed in the line of duty across Australia.
00:31But here today it was a special time and a particularly poignant time given the recent events where we saw Detective Leading Senior Constable Neil Thompson and also Senior Constable Vadim Devart Hotar both slain when they went to execute that search warrant in Pawpunka in Victoria's high country some 17 days ago.
00:55Also on it here today as well was a Tasmanian Constable Keith Smith who was also killed in the line of duty back in June and these riders are trying to raise money for Victoria Police legacy.
01:10So that is to assist families who have lost officers serving and so far this has been their 16th year that this wall-to-wall remembrance ride has taken place and it has raised some $400,000 for Victorian officers, around $2 million nationally.
01:29But we spoke with the Acting Deputy Commissioner Russell Barrett just after that ceremony and before he waved off the group of riders and he says that it is really going to hold a special significance in some of those retired and also serving officers' hearts that are taking part in this ride this year given the circumstances.
01:50And they have just been so warmed by all of the outpouring and support that they no doubt are going to have from communities along the way travelling through Gippsland and then heading up through Eden and Maroombula on their way towards Canberra.
02:04This is what he had to say.
02:05I think it will be sombre. I think it will be very reflective of the people. We've got over 400 riders heading up and that's just from Victoria. They'll join with others from across the jurisdictions.
02:14So it will be a moment of reflection as it always is but particularly for Victoria this year.
02:21And Steph, what's the latest with the search in Paupunkka?
02:25Yes, so at the moment we've heard from Russell Barrett. He says that this is continuing in terms of 400 officers there, some from interstate as well who have joined the search.
02:38And police are continuing to identify areas that they believe that the alleged gunman Desi Freeman, the self-confessed sovereign citizen, might be hiding out.
02:52Now, obviously, they've been searching a lot of rugged and dense bushland in the Buffalo National Park.
02:57It's been a very hard slog for officers.
02:59He was asked just how long Victoria Police could go and he said that they were going to continue until they had exhausted all viable options and potential areas where Desi Freeman could be.
03:14Now, in the meantime, we've also heard from the local community of Paupunkka as well.
03:20In fact, there was a meeting of business owners last night, which was really a chance just for them to get some support and regroup after these awful events more than two and a half weeks ago.
03:31And they're actually calling for some of that police advice to be slightly tweaked about dangers in the area.
03:39Now, at the moment, it says to avoid Paupunkka completely.
03:43They're hoping that that can be tweaked so that at least people can drive through it.
03:48They understand that the Buffalo National Park still has to be a no-go zone, but they're saying that businesses are really struggling in the area.
03:56In fact, some haven't even opened their doors in the 17 days because the situation has been so quiet.
04:04And they're also continuing to call for some more financial assistance from the state government.
04:11So far, the state government has said that they are offering counselling as well as access to a debt helpline, but there have been no payments.
04:19So that's something that the local community is really hoping for because they say that this has got such huge, far-reaching impacts,
04:27not just the loss of really valued and loved police officers in the community, but also the ongoing impact that it is having on locals and businesses there.
Be the first to comment