00:00Good afternoon. Western Region Police are following through on numerous lines of
00:04inquiry into the three murders that have taken place at Lake Angelico. At this
00:08stage we've cleared a number of premises at local area in the local area and we
00:12have also identified a number of places which are being reviewed in relation to
00:17search patterns for the future. At this stage unfortunately we haven't been able
00:22to allocate our offender and we are still continuing the process. We are still
00:27calling on the members of the public to assist us in locating the offender and
00:31obviously his vehicle. Any information can be passed on through Triple O or through
00:36Crimestoppers or contacting your local police station. Happy to take any questions.
00:40Hang on one at a time. Can you confirm the relationship between the alleged
00:45offender and the victims, whether it was a domestic relationship? It's definitely a
00:48domestic relationship. We are obviously investigating along that path.
00:52We know that the offender was out on bail at the time. Did police oppose that bail?
00:56The offender was on police bail initially. Three days later he went before the
01:00court and the court saw fit to continue the police bail. How big is the police
01:04opposed that? Police would not oppose court bail. He was facing domestic
01:09violence charges. Can you say anything about that offending? At this stage he was on bail for
01:15domestic violence offences. Again the bail initiated by police was in relation to bail conditions and
01:22obviously ADVO's. I will say that in the time that he has been on bail, he has complied with
01:28every condition and police have checked on him multiple times. Do you know how he was able to get a gun?
01:32He didn't have a gun licence? The man has never had a gun licence before. We are still using that as part of our
01:38investigation and we will check on that future about where he had access to the firearms.
01:43Do you have any indication of where he might be of close proximity?
01:50Our last sightings were on a road out of Lake Cajalico, hence our concerns for making sure that the public is safe at all times.
01:57Obviously we will obviously investigate those interactions where he's gone. We are concerned about the local villages.
02:05He has had areas where he's gone to those locations before. Currently we have Aboriginal Community Liaison Officers
02:11working in the Murrin Bridge Aboriginal Community to obviously see if they can get in some information for us.
02:15We will obviously investigate every avenue where we hear our sighting of him or his vehicle.
02:21How big of a search area are you searching? One at a time.
02:25We know that his friends have said that it was known that he had weapons. Were police aware of that?
02:30Given he was on an ADO, did police have any knowledge that he did have weapons given he did have a licence?
02:35At this point, as I said before, the gentleman involved has never held a firearms licence.
02:39There is intelligence based that we will obviously use as part of the investigations whether he has access to firearms.
02:45And obviously in this extreme example, he has gained access to firearms.
02:50How big of a search area are you searching?
02:52The search area is fluid. Obviously we get information, we move to that location.
02:57As I said before, we've cleared a number of premises at that location and those locations which are known for him to frequent.
03:04Obviously as more information comes in, we will move our searches in that location.
03:08How many police are involved in the search?
03:10There's up to 100 police involved in the search.
03:13Officers from the tactical unit, the Highway Patrol search units and obviously detectives across the board and from state crime as well.
03:20How are the families doing?
03:22How are the families doing?
03:23I beg your pardon?
03:24How are the families doing?
03:25The families are obviously in this tragic situation but obviously not doing well.
03:29We've put in place family liaison officers to deal with the families as best we can.
03:33And again, support from the local community is very, very important in these circumstances.
03:36We know that he's targeted upon a family and there's multiple family members who have been murdered here.
03:41There's family members who are now scared for themselves.
03:43Do you think that's warranted?
03:44And do they have a right to be concerned here?
03:46Look, as I said before, there is police almost on every corner in Lake Ejellico at the moment.
03:51Again, our process will put us in a position to locate this offender as soon as possible.
03:56Do police believe he's still driving the cancelled vehicle?
03:59At this stage we are looking for information from members of the public about their cancelled vehicle.
04:04We have other information which has been put forward in relation to possibly other vehicles involved.
04:09But again, that is yet to be confirmed.
04:11How long do you anticipate the lock?
04:13In November when he was arrested, why did police grant him bail?
04:16Risk assessment would have been done at the time.
04:19At that time he probably, he had not committed a violent offence in the last five years and therefore deemed fit.
04:26Again, where we can, we obviously grant people bail, we don't want to keep him in custody.
04:30And obviously with strict bail conditions and an AVO in place, it was deemed suitable.
04:34Do you think that's acceptable to the families though, if they hear you say he accepted all of those conditions and he met all of those conditions?
04:41Is that an acceptable answer?
04:43As I said before, a risk assessment would have been done by the person in charge at the time.
04:47And more importantly, the matter went before court.
04:49Three days later, the court saw fit to remain in the bail conditions as were put in place by the police.
04:55Do you know if the council vehicle had GPS tracking?
04:58Beg your pardon?
04:59Do you know if the council vehicle had GPS tracking?
05:01The council vehicle does not have GPS tracking.
05:03How long do you anticipate the lockdown to be in place for Lake Gagelligo?
05:06There is no lockdown in place at the moment.
05:08What we are requesting for people to do is obviously maintain them in their homes in the safe position if they can.
05:14They are free to move about the town wherever they like.
05:16But again, with the exercise caution if they are moving about the scene.
05:19And if something unusual or there is a concern, please obviously call AAA or the police and we will assist you as soon as we can.
05:25Are you able to see whether the search is looking around the Rankin Springs area?
05:29At this point, I will not disclose what search areas are being looked at.
05:33Again, that is part of the investigation.
05:35Do you know what condition the man who was shot is in? Is he in critical?
05:39The gentleman who is, the fourth gentleman involved is at Canberra Hospital.
05:43His condition is listed as serious but stable.
05:45Detectives from Queanbeyan police have spoken to him so obviously he is in a reasonable condition.
05:50How dangerous is the offender if he is seen? Should people be exercising caution?
05:57Most definitely. We do not want anyone approaching the offender if they are seen.
06:00Hence why we ask for people to contact Triple O or Crime Stoppers.
06:04Again, do not approach the offender at any time. We consider him to be armed and dangerous.
06:08Are you searching the Mallee area? Locals have said he spent a lot of time.
06:11Again, as I said before, we are not disclosing the areas. We are searching obviously for giving him free warning what he was doing.
06:17Can you confirm whether the baby was the shooter's? Do you know?
06:22We are aware that one of the victims may have been pregnant.
06:25At this point we can't confirm any more about the information.
06:28We will obviously know more after the post-mortem.
06:30Does the suspected gunman have the capacity to stay out in isolated areas for a longer period of time?
06:35Do you know if he has got the resources to do that?
06:37The gunman himself obviously works for the local council.
06:40We have a good idea of the local area. It would be feasible that he could obviously maintain an extended period in the local area without being detected.
06:49Do you have any idea what type of weapon exactly he used yesterday?
06:53That is part of the investigation. We would rather not disclose that at this time.
06:56Do you know if the weapon was stolen?
06:58Again, we don't know how the weapon came into the possession of the gunman. Again, that will perform part of the investigation.
07:03We know he was known to police. Was that just due to previous domestic violence incidents?
07:10The offender has a long history with criminal matters. His last violent matter was obviously over five years ago.
07:18And as I said before, he has similar interests in relation to violent offences.
07:25But again, he has not breached any of these orders in the last five years.
07:29What kind of effect will this have on a community like this? A small community? It sounds like everyone knew everyone.
07:35Again, this is a tragedy in a small community.
07:38A death in a small community hits a town hard. Three deaths hits them very hard.
07:42It will take a long, long time for this community to get back.
07:45And again, we'll need the community and those around them to support them to get them back on their feet.
07:49You've said this isn't a lockdown, but obviously we see all the businesses are closed. Were they asked to close?
07:55No one has been asked to close as I said before. We are doing it for people's safety.
07:59The recommendation is that people stay inside where possible.
08:02They are free to move about the town if they wish to obviously get essential goods or services.
08:06But again, for their own safety, we recommend that they stay inside while we locate this offender.
08:11Will the police be keeping its base here in Lake Cajelago or moving to another community?
08:16The base will be here while we are searching for this offender unless we get information that he moves to another location.
08:21You said he was last spotted travelling out of Lake Cajelago. Do you know which direction?
08:26Yes, we're aware of that, but again, we'd rather not disclose where.
08:29Do you think, I don't know, police or council, will councils come in to help the community?
08:34We've spoken to some really upset, obviously, witnesses today and I think there might need some help.
08:40Is that something that we can support them on?
08:42Yeah, obviously the Central West Police District will obviously speak to the local council.
08:46We'll obviously put in place some support services and welfare services once this investigation is complete.
08:51We'll see you in the next episode because .
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