A large-scale search effort is underway in the alpine foothills near Porepunkah as police, emergency services, and members of the Australian Defence Force continue to scour the rugged terrain for Dezi Freeman (born Desmond Filby), who was last seen at his residence following an alleged double murder.
The Porepunkah police shootings occurred on the morning of Tuesday 26 August 2025 in Porepunkah, Victoria, Australia. Victoria Police were at a property to execute a search warrant against Dezi Bird Freeman, a self-proclaimed sovereign citizen known to police, before he allegedly opened fire on the officers. Two Victoria Police officers, Neal Thompson and Vadim De Waart, were killed and a third was injured in his upper leg. Seven others were extracted from the property uninjured.
The 27-minute siege in which 56-year-old Dezi Freeman barricaded himself inside his bus with his wife Mali and their two-year-old son started when ten officers descended upon the Freeman compound in Porepunkah, 300 kilometres northeast of Melbourne, to execute a search warrant over historical allegations that Freeman had sexually assaulted a minor.
What followed was a tense and volatile confrontation, captured from multiple angles. The standoff escalated quickly. Freeman, his voice raw with fury, flatly rejected commands to open the bus door even as officers, some in plain clothes, others in uniform, pleaded with him to comply.
“We have a search warrant right here. Come out and look at it,” one officer urged.
“Come out and talk to us, Dez. We are not going away.”
From within the bus, Mali Freeman’s trembling voice could be heard. “Can you please not barge in? I have a kid, please.” Her husband’s response was unrelenting: “Leave us alone, leave us alone!”
For nearly half an hour, the exchange spiralled through anger, accusation, and despair. Freeman demanded disability support officers, named specific police he insisted should attend, and declared the warrant “not valid.” When officers attempted to prise open the bus door with a crowbar, he erupted with rage after being told by SOCIT investigators that the search was linked to a sexual assault investigation involving a child.
“Oh, for f***’s sake, what bulls***,” he roared, branding police “psychopaths” and charging they had been persecuting him for years. He hurled accusations of trespass, corruption, and even “domestic terrorism.”
Inside, Mali and the couple’s toddler remained pressed against the door as officers tried to force their way in. A tiny hand, possibly Mali’s or the child’s, could be seen reaching through the gap, a haunting image of fear and desperation. Freeman’s tirade grew ever more unhinged, accusing police of being “Nazi thugs” who would “shoot him in the back.” Officers, maintaining their composure, responded firmly that no harm would come to him.
At the scene were Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson, 59, a veteran officer in jeans and a red/black flannelette shirt, working to defuse the situation, and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart, 34, who had moved closer to the bus door in the final moments. Ms Freeman sat directly behind that door on the bus steps, her toddler beside her, as officers again implored: “Just read the warrant. Take a breath.”
But Freeman spiralled further. He ranted about living under “Communist Australia” and swore that the warrant was fraudulent. Eventually, Detective Thompson climbed onto the roof of the bus and swung his way inside in the bus, feet and legs first through a window he had forced open.
Moments later, chaos erupted. Two gunshots rang out. Officers scattered in horror, retreating as the mobile phone video ended. Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart were killed instantly, executed at point-blank range from what is believed to be a homemade rifle. A third officer was left critically wounded, though it remains unclear exactly when the injury occurred, it is believed he was shot by Freeman through one of the open windows on his bus.
Freeman then stripped weapons from the two fallen officers and vanished into the surrounding alpine bushland, triggering one of the largest manhunts in Victoria’s history.
Now entering its third week, the search involves over 450 police officers alongside the Australian Defence Force. When this masthead attended, we witnessed a major police operation in Porepunkah, but Freeman again was not located. On Saturday, Victoria Police announced a $1 million reward for information leading to Freeman’s arrest—a stark indication of the extraordinary scale and gravity of the threat he continues to pose.
Victoria Police Search and Rescue officers, Fugitive Squad, CIRT, SOG and the Homicide Squad are supported by SES crews, and PolAir helicopters equipped with thermal imaging and LiDar, have been combing through the area for over ten days. Specialist teams have been brought in to navigate some of the most inaccessible sections of the Ovens River corridor and surrounding bushland at the Mount Buffalo National Park – which is now closed to the public.
Freeman fled from police into bushland, prompting a manhunt involving hundreds of police officers and members of the Australian Defence Force. Freeman is yet to be located.
A make-shift command centre has been established at the site of DEECA (Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action) – 5340 Great Alpine Rd, Ovens VIC 3738 and all local operations are being coordinated from there.
Photographs documenting parts of the active crime scene have drawn international attention, as they were captured by Lord Murray Schoorman of Peak Hour Images, a distinguished and world-renowned photojournalist known for his striking coverage of both major news events and human-interest stories for over two decades. His images, released with the approval of investigators, depict the intensity of the search efforts against the dramatic backdrop of Victoria’s Alpine region.
Police emphasized that the investigation remains open and all possibilities are being explored. While search efforts continue, detectives are also pursuing leads and interviewing people who may have seen or heard anything unusual in the Porepunkah area.
An information caravan has been setup at nearby town – Bright. Police are inviting anyone who can help them to come and have a chat.
The incident has shaken the tight-knit alpine community. Local businesses have reported several cancellations and a significant downturn in takings, while residents have been locking their doors and windows, which they ordinarily do not do.
Authorities are urging anyone with any information regarding Freeman’s movements to come forward immediately. Crimestoppers have specialist call takers, and police stress that even minor details could prove crucial.
As the search enters its tenth day, investigators say their priority remains locating Freeman quickly but admit that conditions in the bushland grow more challenging with each passing hour.
Freeman went to school in Glen Waverley before moving to Wodonga in 1977 as a child. At the time of the shooting, he lived with his wife Amalia and their children at a property in Porepunkah. Neighbours reported the property also housed a group of people other than Freeman’s family. He was previously known as Desmond Christopher Filby, but he changed his last name to Freeman; the sovereign citizen movement is also known as the “free man” movement. Freeman had previously been involved in a dispute with his neighbours in 2018. He was a regular churchgoer.
The shooter was identified as 56-year-old Dezi Bird Freeman, a self-proclaimed sovereign citizen. Freeman had previously referred to police as “gestapo”, “terrorist thugs”, “friggin’ Nazis” and “corrupt filth” in court, and was associated with an attempt to bring a private prosecution of treason against former and very unliked Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. In 2021, Freeman was arrested outside an anti-vaccine and anti-lockdown protest at the Myrtleford courthouse. Locals said during the COVID-19 pandemic Freeman began to behave increasingly erratically, refusing to wear a mask in stores, voicing his refusal to get vaccinated and telling people about his distaste for government restrictions and lockdowns.
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