LIVE updates: Who was REALLY hiding Dezi Freeman

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Updated: 16:47 EDT, 30 March 2026

Fugitive cop killer Dezi Freeman has been shot dead by heavily-armed police in northeast Victoria after a three-hour standoff.

Freeman, 56, was shot by officers at about 8.30am after he was reportedly found in a ‘long caravan’ near Walwa, 188km northeast of Porepunkah, where he went missing on August 26.

Sources have told the Herald Sun that authorities were alerted to the fugitive’s location at a Filipino couple’s property by a tip-off.

Follow Daily Mail’s live coverage.

First look at Dezi Freeman’s hiding place

Photos have emerged showing a remote property, called Tholo Farm, where fugitive Dezi Freeman was discovered by police early on Monday morning.

The 56-year-old was reportedly found inside a long caravan near Walwa, about 188km northeast of Porepunkah in northeast Victoria, where he went missing on August 26.

An aerial shot shows the off-grid site on Murray River Road, including a handful of structures similar to shipping containers.

There were also several disused vehicles on the property, which is about 35.94 hectares, and has no toilet or running water.

The former caretaker of the farm, Rebecca, said she was told by a neighbour that the police operation had taken place.

She told the Daily Mail a local child watched everything unfold, and may have provided police with the tip-off.

The current property owner is an elderly ‘cooker’ who lives with his children in Tasmania, Rebecca said, adding that she hopes he is there and not in Victoria.

30 March 2026 SYDNEY NSW WWW.MATRIXNEWS.COM.AU CREDIT: MATRIXNEWS FOR DAILYMAIL AUSTRALIA ASSIGNMENT: Dezi Freeman LOCATION: Thologolong, VIC, 3691

ASSIGNMENT: Dezi Freeman

Desi Freeman - Container

If Freeman had made a fire during his time in the caravan, Rebecca said people would have seen the smoke from the road, which would have been suspicious as locals knew the owner was out of state.

She added that an elderly man had been looking after the property but had recently died.

Police said there were no confirmed sightings of Freeman until Monday despite more than 2,000 leads over the seven-month search operation.

It is understood there is still a heavy police presence in the area.

30 March 2026 SYDNEY NSW WWW.MATRIXNEWS.COM.AU CREDIT: MATRIXNEWS FOR DAILYMAIL AUSTRALIA ASSIGNMENT: Dezi Freeman LOCATION: Thologolong, VIC, 3691

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Officers ‘yet to speak’ with property owner

Victoria Police Commissioner Mike Bush said investigators were still waiting to speak with the owner of the property near Walwa where Freeman was found.

While he did not confirm if the owner was being treated as a person of interest, Bush said: ‘We’re still trying to locate and speak with that person.

‘We know who that person is but we’re yet to speak with them.’

It is unclear how long Freeman was at the property before he was fatally shot by police on Monday.

Police officers attend the scene where fugitive Dezi Freeman was shot dead in Porepunkah, Victoria, Monday, March 30, 2026. Fugitive Dezi Freeman has been reportedly shot dead by police after six months on the run following the killing of two officers. (AAP Image/James Ross) NO ARCHIVING

No one else on the property when Freeman was found

Victoria Police Commissioner Mike Bush told a press conference the property where Dezi Freeman was found was empty in the 24 hours leading up to his stand-off with police.

Bush added he was ‘very comfortable’ with the actions taken by Victoria Police officers on Monday morning, which will be investigated by an independent team.

After watching footage of the confrontation, Bush claimed Freeman was given every opportunity to surrender peacefully before emerging with a firearm.

‘Everyone wanted this to end peacefully, everyone wanted closure,’ Bush said.

‘Unfortunately we only have one of these things.’

The state coroner visited the scene on Monday and will be part of the independent investigation into officers’ actions.

Whether or not Freeman opened fire on the officers and if he wore a blanket as he walked emerged from the building will form part of the investigation.

A blue shipping container is seen where Victoria Police officers attend a scene where fugitive Dezi Freeman was shot dead in Porepunkah, Victoria, Monday, March 30, 2026. Fugitive Dezi Freeman has been reportedly shot dead by police after six months on the run following the killing of two officers. (AAP Image/James Ross) NO ARCHIVING

Victorian Premier labels Freeman an ‘evil man’

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has labelled Dezi Freeman an ‘evil man’ while sharing condolences for the loved ones of the two officers he killed on August 26.

Allan fronted a press conference on Monday afternoon following the fatal shooting of the cop killer earlier in the day.

‘Today an evil man is dead and it’s good that this individual is no longer a threat to the Victorian community,’ she said.

Allan then paid her respects to Det Leading Sen Const Neal Thompson, 59, and Sen Const Vadim De Waart, 35, who were killed by Freeman on a property in Porepunkah.

‘The tragic loss of these two strong, brave Victorian Police officers will continue to be felt forever,’ Allan said

‘For their families and the family that is Victoria Police, my thoughts are with you today.

‘The threat may be over but, for you, the mourning will never end.’

‘I don’t think too much of him’

Police Association of Victoria secretary Wayne Gatt said there is relief in the police force after Dezi Freeman was shot dead after months on the run, calling the fugitive a ‘coward’.

‘I don’t think too much of (Freeman), he’s dead today,’ he told reporters on Monday afternoon.

‘The memory of cowards fades quickly, with heroes it lives on forever. Neal and Vadim, we’ll remember them forever.

‘I think in the police force, any one of us could have been the next two officers to confront this person at a service station, in the street, or at the shops.

‘Fortunately, because of the work of everybody involved in this investigation, that’s not going to happen.’

Mr Gatt told reporters that anyone who might have helped Freeman should be concerned.

‘Anybody who has helped this person over a point of time should be worried,’ he says.

‘They should know that the dogged determination that led to today’s events will persist. Our members will chase every rabbit down every burrow.

‘If we allow such terrible, horrible things to happen to people who are charged with the responsibility of protecting others in our community, what we’re effectively saying is the community is open slather.’

The top secret operation to corner Freeman

Victoria Police Special Operations Group shot Dezi Freeman dead at 8.30am on Monday following a three-hour standoff.

Freeman had been on the run or feared dead since August last year when he fatally gunned down Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson, 59, and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart, 34.

There had been no sign of him until a Thologolong local is believed to have spotted Freeman at his camp near the Victoria-New South Wales border and alerted police over the weekend.

A specialist squad was quickly mobilised and sent to the converted shipping container/caravan where he was hiding out.

05 SEPT 2025 SYDNEY NSWWWW.MATRIXNEWS.COM.AUCREDIT: MATRIXNEWS FOR DAILYMAIL AUSTRALIAASSIGNMENT: DAY 11 IN HUNT FOR DEZI FREEMAN MORE SEARCHESMore tactical Police in search teams in the hunt for Dezi Freeman.

Officers sealed off the immediate area and waited overnight before launching their raid on Freeman’s lair just before dawn.

It’s understood the Special Operations Group deployed flash-bang stun grenades to disorient Freeman as the standoff began, before he eventually opened fire on police using the pistol he stole from Senior Constable Thompson.

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush confirmed an elite team of ‘professionals’ shot and killed Freeman after he was offered the chance to surrender.

Commissioner Bush said the standoff began about 5.30am and Freeman was offered every opportunity to hand himself in.

He said police were left with no choice but to gun him down in a ‘justified shooting’ three hours later.

Farm owner’s shock after Freeman found on his property

Richard Sutherland has been shocked by the news his remote property, Tholo Farm, was the bolthole for fugitive Dezi Freeman.

Mr Sutherland has been in Tasmania for the last four months, and has no ties to Freeman or the sovereign citizen movement.

His brother, Neil, said the police operation which saw specialist officers shoot Freeman dead on Monday morning had rattled Richard.

‘He’s in shock. He’s in more shock than I am,’ Neil Sutherland told The Border Mail.

‘He’s never even met Dezi.’

Richard Sutherland has owned the farm for at least 15 years but had not visited since going on holiday at the end of last year as he felt there was ‘nothing to keep an eye on’.

Desi Freeman - Container

Neil Sutherland (pictured below), who lives two properties away from the site of the shooting, said Freeman must have been a strong bushman to have reached the farm near Mount Lawson State Park.

‘I’m very surprised, I thought he would have perished,’ the farmer said.

‘He’s a very good bushman if he’s walked all this way.’

He also described hearing helicopters and at least one gunshot on Monday morning.

‘I’ve woken up by the chopper doing circle work,’ he told reporters on Monday morning.

‘It wasn’t long after that I heard the police siren for a short time and then the loudspeaker.

‘I think that might have happened a couple of times. I did hear a gunshot.’

30 March 2026 SYDNEY NSW WWW.MATRIXNEWS.COM.AU CREDIT: MATRIXNEWS FOR DAILYMAIL AUSTRALIA ASSIGNMENT: Dezi Freeman LOCATION: Thologolong, VIC, 3691 Pictured: Neil Sutherland

How Freeman’s survival skills kept him alive

As an expert survivalist, Dezi Freeman may have been able to evade police for seven months in extreme weather either because he knew how to make shelter and forage for food, or because others were helping him.

Professional bush tracker Jake Cassar has told Daily Mail that Freeman could survive the conditions by eating dandelions, yams, and rabbits for nutrients, and would have been able to keep warm if he knew how to use natural resources.

‘If you have the right skills and supplies, you can live indefinitely in the wild,’ he said.

‘Essentially, if he had the skills to make fire from natural resources or from supplies he had stashed, that would have provided enough warmth to keep hypothermia away.’

He said caves could have been used to evade drones and surveillance aircraft, and to keep him safe from exposure.

When bushfires hit the Walwa region, he said, Freeman may also have been skilled enough to determine the direction of the bushfires and move the other way.

Mr Cassar said rural Australia is brimming with wild rabbits to trap or shoot, but Freeman may have also been shooting the occasional cow and curing the meat.

‘Gunshots would normally give his location away, but you hear guns go off all the time in rural areas so he might have been doing that and no one noticed,’ he said.

Aussies divided as Freeman ‘avoids justice in court’

Australians praised the efforts of police after news broke that Dezi Freeman had finally been found on Monday.

The 56-year-old was shot dead by members of a special operations group after a stand-off outside a ‘long container’ in north-east Victoria.

‘Well done, Victoria Police,’ one wrote.

Some argued Freeman should have faced trial, while others shared their disbelief that he had actually been caught, demanding to see police bodycam footage.

‘He should have been captured and made to stand trial. Police are not judge, jury and executioner,’ one added.

Macquarie University criminology expert Dr Vince Hurley told Daily Mail that Freeman had taken the ‘coward’s way out’.

He said there was only one group of people who could answer whether or not Freeman faced the justice he deserved.

‘The only ones than can actually answer this are the victims’ families,’ he said.

Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson, 59, and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart, 34, were the two officers killed by Freeman.

The pair had travelled to the property in Porepunkah, north-east of Melbourne, alongside eight colleagues to execute a warrant for alleged sexual offences.

Police attendees pay their respects during a funeral procession following the funeral service for Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson at the Victoria Police Academy Chapel in Melbourne, Monday, September 8, 2025. (AAP Image/Con Chronis) NO ARCHIVING 15084579

It is with incredible sadness that Victoria Police names the two officers who were tragically killed in the line of duty in Porepunkah yesterday: Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart.¿ 15319133

Constable Thompson’s best friend John Bird said he was relieved to hear the news about Freeman.

‘It’s a good day,’ he told ABC News.

‘It doesn’t change Thommo, but it is a good day because at least the person who caused it is not drawing breath anymore.

‘I hope everyone that has been helping him, because he can’t have been doing this alone, suffers the full force of the law too.

‘It’s just a relief. Like I said, it doesn’t change anything much, but it is closure on that side of things.’

Sources reveal who was hiding Freeman

Freeman was reportedly found inside a long caravan in northeast Victoria on Monday, armed and wrapped in a blanket as he faced-off with police.

Sources have revealed he was fatally shot by elite Special Operations Group (SOG) after he exited the container firing a handgun that he may have stolen after shooting dead two police officers.

The sources told the Herald Sun that a Filipino couple were habouring him on a property in Thologolong near Walwa, about two hours from Porepunkah.

They claimed officers from the operation group waited overnight after cordoning off the area following a tip-off.

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Chief Commissioner Mike Bush confirmed on Monday morning that police were exploring whether the weapon Freeman used had been taken during his deadly shootout with police in August last year.

‘There was an appeal to encourage the person to come out… but it did result from a standoff, the deployment of tactics,’ he said.

‘He then exited the building. There was an opportunity for him to surrender peacefully, which he did not.’

Asked what made police fire at Freeman, the chief commissioner said the origin would be investigated but that the action was justified.

‘They obviously believed they were under threat, though they’re a team of professionals,’ he said.

‘I’m confident that the actions they took were justified.’

Freeman’s teenage son lashes out at ‘friends’

Koah Freeman has made an emotional Facebook post on a Bright community noticeboard just hours after his father, Dezi, was killed by police.

‘I am not here to defend my father’s actions because I know what he did was wrong,’ Koah said.

‘What I’m here about however is seeing so called ‘friends’ and people who I thought were nice people say some questionable things.

‘I hope you all realise that I am looking at everything you are saying, and that you all realise how that is making me feel. I know you people all have thoughts to share about the situation that has been happening.

‘Just bear in mind that to you’s my father was a cop killer, but to me that’s still my father who raised me to be the man I am today. And for the people who know me well they know exactly what I’m talking about.

‘This is news that I’ll be grieving about while some of you disgusting humans celebrate online for me to watch.’

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Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said the ‘shooting was justified’ during a press conference on Monday morning.

‘The very first people to be made aware of the outcome of this operation were the families of the officers tragically killed on August 26, and all of the members that were involved on that day,’ he said.

‘There was a lot to suggest that Freeman had taken his own life. But I can tell you standing here that our investigators, that’s why they’re professionals, keep their mind open to every possible outcome and follow every possible lead.

‘What I can say – should it be confirmed that the deceased is Freeman, is this brings closure to what was a tragic and terrible event.’

Dezi Freeman ‘plotted’ while on the run, source reveals

Porepunkah man Dezi Freeman was photographed during a previous court appearance. (Supplied) 15046119 15050987 15273037 15619087

Dezi Freeman’s sudden death has devastated his family and friends, who endured months of fear and uncertainty.

Following the news he had been shot after a stand-off with police, a close source has spoken to the Daily Mail about Freeman’s ongoing ‘vendetta’ against authorities.

‘Ending his own life wouldn’t be something he’d do unless it was the last resort,’ they said.

‘He’d want revenge and given his long history with authority there is little doubt that’s what he was plotting for six months.

‘The isolation wouldn’t bother him; in fact it would just make him more determined and more focused.’