Police in regional Victoria to carry bigger guns after ‘cold-blooded’ Porepunkah shooting

Police in Victoria’s Alpine region will be given bigger rifles to carry alongside their handguns after Dezi Freeman shot and killed two police officers in Porepunkah last year.

Victoria’s Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush confirmed that rural officers in Wangaratta in the state’s north-east will be equipped with long-arm rifles for added protection.

The long-arms are already used by officers in other regional Victorian districts, including Ballarat and Geelong.

“Victoria Police will soon equip officers in Wangaratta with semi-automatic rifles,” Victoria Police said in a statement.

“This will mean frontline police are well-equipped and provided an extra layer of protection when responding to critical incidents.”

The rifles will not be personally issued but instead will be assigned to areas or specific shifts.

Officers will not be “patrolling the streets” with the rifles and the weapons won’t be seen by the community unless necessary, Victoria Police added.

Officers in Wangaratta will begin training to use the rifles in July.

The armoury upgrade comes after Freeman killed police officers Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart on August 26 at a rural property in Porepunkah last year.

The fugitive remained on the run for seven months before he was shot dead by police at a rural address in Thologolong on March 30.

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Freeman was armed with a gun taken from one of the slain officers when he died.

Specialist teams from Melbourne who negotiated with Freeman before his death were equipped with the same long-armed rifles which will be given to police.

Bush told the ABC that the other officers involved, including a third police officer who was shot by Freeman in Porepunkah, are being supported during their recovery.

The unnamed officer is doing well “physically” and remains in the force but the top cop said the shooting will have a long tail for Victoria’s police community.

“There is no more traumatic incident for police than the brutal, cold-blooded murder of two of your officers and the serious injury of one other,” Bush added.

Police still heavily investigating Freeman’s movements

Police have repeatedly stated that anyone who may have assisted Freeman during his time on the run will be held accountable.

“The investigation does not stop simply because Freeman was located,” Taskforce Summit Detective Inspector Anthony Gasparini said earlier this month.

Officers have conducted several raids on properties in NSW and Victoria and made multiple arrests.

No charges have been laid.

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Bush said investigators are still gathering evidence before presenting it before the court.

“We’re working our way towards charging those responsible for being complicit and harbouring him,” he said.