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Dezi Freeman became one of Australia’s most notorious fugitives after allegedly murdering two Victorian police officers during a police raid at a rural property near Porepunkah in 2025. The shocking ambush triggered one of the largest manhunts in Australian history after Freeman disappeared into rugged alpine bushland heavily armed and determined to avoid capture. The case generated enormous national attention because Freeman allegedly shot police officers serving a warrant connected to child abuse material investigations before vanishing into the wilderness for more than seven months. His eventual death in a police shootout near the Victoria-New South Wales border in March 2026 brought an end to a massive tactical operation that consumed police resources across multiple states.
Dezi Freeman, whose full name was Desmond Freeman, lived in Victoria’s alpine region near Porepunkah and spent much of his life in rural communities throughout north-east Victoria. Before the police killings brought national notoriety, Freeman was known locally as a confrontational and anti-authoritarian figure who frequently clashed with police and government institutions.
Reports later revealed Freeman strongly identified with “sovereign citizen” ideology, a fringe anti-government movement that rejects legal authority and policing powers. Friends, journalists and investigators later described him as increasingly radicalized in the years before the shootings, with social media posts showing deep hostility toward police and political institutions.
Freeman also possessed a lengthy criminal history stretching back decades, though much of it involved disruptive behavior, anti-authority incidents and lower-level offending rather than major violent convictions. Investigators later disclosed that police had attended his property in 2025 while investigating allegations linked to child abuse material discovered on electronic devices associated with him.
On August 26, 2025, a team of Victorian police officers arrived at a rural property near Porepunkah to execute a warrant connected to a sexual offences and child abuse investigation involving Dezi Freeman. Authorities alleged Freeman opened fire on officers during the operation in what investigators later described as a deliberate ambush.
The attack killed Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart, while a third officer suffered serious injuries. Investigators later stated Freeman used multiple firearms during the confrontation and may have attempted to target additional officers at the property.
After the shootings, Freeman fled into nearby bushland surrounding Mount Buffalo National Park. His disappearance triggered an enormous police response involving tactical officers, specialist trackers, helicopters, drones and interstate law enforcement support. The operation became one of the longest and most expensive manhunts in Victorian policing history.
According to investigators, Dezi Freeman used firearms to ambush police officers carrying out a lawful search operation at his rural property.
Authorities alleged Freeman exploited both his knowledge of remote alpine terrain and long-term bush survival skills to evade capture following the shootings. Police later stated he had extensive familiarity with wilderness areas surrounding Victoria’s north-east alpine regions and was capable of surviving in isolated conditions for long periods.
Investigators also examined Freeman’s anti-police ideology and “sovereign citizen” beliefs as part of understanding the motive behind the attack. Court records and prior incidents reportedly showed Freeman had a long-standing hatred of police and government authority before the fatal shootings occurred.
During the months-long manhunt, authorities believed Freeman remained heavily armed and potentially received assistance while hiding in remote regions across Victoria’s alpine wilderness.
Following the murders of the two officers, Victorian authorities launched a massive tactical operation involving police from across Australia and New Zealand. Search teams flooded the alpine region surrounding Porepunkah, Mount Buffalo and nearby wilderness areas while investigators pursued thousands of public tips regarding Freeman’s possible location.
For more than seven months, Dezi Freeman successfully evaded capture despite drones, helicopters, specialist tactical units and reward offers exceeding $1 million. Police later stated the operation became one of the largest fugitive hunts ever conducted in Australia.
On March 30, 2026, tactical police located Freeman at a remote property near Thologolong on the Victoria-New South Wales border. Authorities surrounded a makeshift structure where Freeman had allegedly been hiding before a lengthy armed standoff unfolded. Police later stated Freeman emerged armed, prompting officers to open fire and kill him at the scene.
Because Dezi Freeman died during the police operation in March 2026, the case never proceeded to a criminal trial.
Investigators instead focused on reconstructing the events surrounding the fatal ambush at Porepunkah, the seven-month manhunt and whether Freeman received assistance while hiding from authorities. Police also continued examining evidence linked to the original child abuse material investigation connected to the warrant operation at his property.
The deaths of Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart deeply impacted Victoria Police and communities across Australia. Both officers were publicly honored following the shootings, with law enforcement leaders describing the attack as one of the darkest days in recent Victorian policing history.
Freeman’s death brought an official end to the manhunt, though coronial investigations and police reviews into the shootings and subsequent tactical operation continued afterward.
The Dezi Freeman case became one of Australia’s most heavily discussed criminal investigations because it combined anti-government extremism, police killings, wilderness survival and a months-long fugitive hunt across rugged alpine terrain.
Media coverage frequently focused on Freeman’s “sovereign citizen” ideology and longstanding hostility toward police. Investigators later revealed social media posts in which Freeman referred to police as “Nazis” and expressed violent anti-authority beliefs years before the shootings.
The operation to locate Freeman involved enormous police resources and raised broader concerns surrounding extremist anti-government beliefs, heavily armed fugitives and officer safety during warrant executions in remote rural environments.
The deaths of Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart remain deeply significant within Australian policing history, while the manhunt itself became one of the most extensive tactical searches ever conducted in Victoria.
"The only good cop is a dead cop."— Dezi Freeman
ABC News special investigations
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7NEWS Spotlight
Examined the alpine fugitive search and the deaths of the officers.
SBS News investigations
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Victoria Police press conferences
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Australian television reporting
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Crime reporting and legal analysis
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Dezi Freeman: The Hunt
Australian investigative podcast examining:
Australian True Crime
Discussed the killings, fugitive search and impact on Victoria Police.
Casefile
Covered the timeline of the shootings and the wilderness manhunt.
Independent crime commentary podcasts
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The Dezi Freeman case received extensive media coverage from:
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