Fugitive Dezi Freeman Killed by Police in Victoria After Seven-Month Manhunt
Dezi Freeman, wanted for the fatal shooting of two police officers, was shot dead by Victoria Police in northeast Victoria, concluding a seven-month search.
Victoria Police have confirmed the death of Dezi Freeman, the fugitive accused of killing two officers in August 2025. Freeman was fatally shot by police at a rural property near Walwa in northeast Victoria on Monday morning, ending a seven-month manhunt.
Detective Senior Constable Neal Thompson, 59, and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart-Hottart, 34, were killed on August 26, 2025, while serving a warrant at Freeman's property in Porepunkah, approximately 300 kilometers northeast of Melbourne. A third officer sustained a leg injury during the incident. Freeman, a self-proclaimed sovereign citizen known to police, fled into the dense bushland of Mount Buffalo National Park following the shootings.
The extensive search for Freeman involved hundreds of officers, including personnel from New Zealand, and was unprecedented in scale. In February 2026, police initiated a five-day search in Mount Buffalo National Park, based on intelligence linked to a gunshot heard shortly after the fatal shootings. Detective Inspector Adam Tilley stated at the time, "We do believe strongly that he is in this area deceased."
On March 30, 2026, acting on a tip-off, police located Freeman at a rural address near Walwa. The operation concluded with Freeman being shot dead; no officers were injured during the incident. The State Coroner will attend the scene, and the investigation will be overseen by the Professional Standards Command, as per standard procedure for police shootings.