The owner of Dezi Freeman’s hideout has contacted police after learning about the siege while living in a remote Tasmanian town.
The 75-year-old man has been sought by Victoria Police since the shoot-out at the rural Murray River Road property in Thologolong on Monday. He is not suspected of any involvement.
Freeman died in a volley of gunfire from heavily armed members of the Special Operations Group outside the 35-hectare property near the Victorian border, following an hours-long stand-off calling for his surrender.
The owner, Richard Sutherland – who is suffering a serious illness – has been living in remote eastern Tasmania with his family since Christmas, friends have confirmed.
One friend, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told this masthead Sutherland has called a police station to make himself available whenever Victorian officers are ready to interview him.
“He’s not in any way sympathetic to [Freeman or his beliefs],” he said.
The friend, as well as other sources close to the owner, said Sutherland had no clue there was anyone staying on the property.
The gate to the property had been left unlocked since January to allow the fire department access. The property sits on the edge of land recently ravaged by bushfires.
“He was advised to leave the gate open … so it wasn’t locked. Someone must’ve worked out there’s no one living there. Somebody has. And then someone’s assisted [Freeman] to stay there with food.
“Freeman doesn’t earn an income … someone would have had to have gone and got groceries and things cause you can’t live on that property without getting food and stuff.”
At the property, Freeman lived in a collection of shipping containers and portable houses set among what one local described as “a whole heap of crap”. Sutherland’s friend said the place was fantastic, but it’d been left in a “bit of a mess” due to his illness.
Victoria police are investigating whether others had been at the Thologolong property before Freeman’s death.
Chief commissioner Mike Bush said there was no one else on the property at the time, but a number of vehicles were found.
“It’s a rural property. No doubt at some point we’ll be able to describe it and provide photographs,” Bush told reporters.
“It’s a very remote community. That is now forming part of a crime scene that will be totally examined.”
Bush added that “every tactical option” to resolve the matter peacefully was deployed, but Freeman’s actions “took away any discretion our officers had to resolve this peacefully”.
Carla Jaeger is a journalist for The Age. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or message carlajaeger.62 on Signal.Connect via X or email.From our partners
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