A 59-year-old detective and a 35-year-old senior constable both died in the horrific incident, which came after 10 officers arrived at the property to serve a warrant.
Freeman allegedly took the dead officers’ guns and a police radio to listen to officers’ movements and then fled deep into alpine wilderness, about 300km northeast of Melbourne.
A huge police contigent continues to hunt the fugitive as the search enters its fourth day.
Freeman’s wife and son in police raid
Details have emerged of a dramatic police raid at a Porepunkah address last night as cops continue to hunt suspected police killer Dezi Freeman.
Fugitive Squad detectives teamed with the Special Operations Group members converged at the property on Chandler Court and told Freeman’s wife, Mali, and their 15-year-old son to ‘come out with their hands up’ at 8.40pm, neighbours reported.
Mali and her son were interviewed then released pending further enquiries.
There have been no confirmed sightings of the 56-year-old since two police officers were shot dead and a third injured on Tuesday.
The police chopper was back in the air above Porepunkah early Friday morning.
Daily Mail reporter Wayne Flower confirmed the chopper is flying lower than usual as the search enters its fourth day.
What we know so far
It’s day four of the search and sovereign citizen Dezi Freeman is still on the run in the Victorian High Country
Police helicopters have circled overhead, drones have scanned the treelines, and roadblocks have been set up for kilometres, yet Freeman has disappeared without a trace
Locals are baffled, with some believing he may have dug a secret underground bunker in preparation
On Tuesday morning, 10 officers arrived at the Freemans’ remote farmhouse with a warrant over historic sexual assault charges
Instead of surrendering, Freeman allegedly grabbed a homemade shotgun and opened fire. Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson, 59, was killed in the ambush. Senior Constable Vadim De Waart, 35, was also gunned down. A third officer was wounded but survived
In a podcast six years ago, Freeman declared, ‘The government can come in and police can come in and raid your fridge and cook your dog, if you give them consent’
Dramatic arrest in hunt for fugitive: ‘come to the front door with nothing in their hands’
Sunrise reported witnessing a police officer leaning out the side of a hut on a property with what looked like a machine gun.
The K-9 unit was positioned at the bottom of a mountain as police searched through all the outhouses during a ‘very active’ morning in Porepunkah.
Victoria Police just confirmed officer arrested who is believed to Freeman’s wife and son at a Chandler Ct property about 8.40pm last night.
Police cordoned the area and called out through a BearCat, ordering those inside to ‘come to the front door with nothing in their hands’.
7News reported they spoke to residents who were ‘incredibly shocked by what had happened’.
Freeman’s housemate sends out plea
Freeman’s housemate Fabio Zambelli (pictured below) told 10 News he was close to the accused cop killer’s wife Mali and their children who he said were ‘highly stressed’.
‘To Dezi, do the right thing for your family, give up, surrender,’ he said.
‘I’m not here to judge, but there’s a woman and kids under high stress.’
Mr Zambelli also described Freeman as a ‘professional, resilient bushman’, and that no one has had contact with him.
‘Mali, her family and Dezi and have been very kind to me,’ he said.
Mr Zambelli slept in his car on Wednesday night because the Freeman’s property has been declared a crime scene.
He urged police to bring Freeman in alive.
‘By taking him alive, will allow us to have a better understanding of the situation,’ Mr Zambelli said.
Cops send in ‘BearCats’ and dog squad in hunt for Freeman
The Victoria Police Special Operations Group (SOG) chopper has just landed at an airstrip near Porepunkah as the search moves to mobile ground units.
Specialist police in armoured all-terrain vehicles known as ‘BearCats’ (pictured below) and the dog squad are moving towards bushland as the hunt for Freeman enters its fourth day.
Grim warning before cop killings
Fugitive gunman Dezi Freeman sent an ominous warning to authorities that ‘they picked the wrong person to mess with’ and are ‘finding that out’.
The accused cop killer also said ‘Freeman’s the name freedom’s the game’ when he appeared on a 2019 episode of The Mike Holt Show – a podcast favoured by cookers and crackpots.
Freeman, who changed his surname from Philby, appeared on the Mike Holt Show to boast about his insane claim he successfully arrested a magistrate at the Wangaratta court in 2019.
The alleged murderer ranted that authorities used him as a ‘scapegoat’ after an issue arose about road access to Mount buffalo National Park.
Freeman claimed authorities were suing him ‘so they effectively get control of the mountain’.
‘They think I’m the weak link,’ Freeman said. ‘They picked the wrong person to mess with, and I think they’re finding that out’.
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Dramatic police raid on Porepunkah home as manhunt for suspected cop killer closes in: ‘Come out with your hands in the air’
