Dezi Freeman is wanted by police for his alleged shooting of two officers at his property. (Supplied) Photo: Supplied / Victoria Police
- Alleged gunman Dezi Freeman, accused of killing two police officers, remains on the run.
- Police arrested members of Mr Freeman's family during the week, before releasing them without charge.
- On Sunday, Ms Freeman urged her husband to turn himself in, and disavowed his anti-authoritarian beliefs.
As a new week dawns in the regional town of Porepunkah in Victoria's north-east, fugitive Dezi Freeman remains on the run.
Mr Freeman is accused of shooting Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart as they attempted to execute a warrant for historical sex offences at his property, before escaping into the bush heavily armed.
As the days passed following Tuesday's shooting, investigations by the ABC revealed a portrait of the alleged shooter as a church-going, obsessive, anti-authoritarian figure with an arsenal of weapons.
Police confirmed the 56-year-old Mr Freeman as an experienced bushman who knew the terrain around his property better than police.
Convoys of armoured vehicles drove in and out of Mt Buffalo National Park over the weekend, while a helicopter hovered over the mountain.
Authorities said the mountainous landscape was proving a challenge to search teams, a fact made worse by the arrival of some of the worst weather of the year.
Victoria's alpine regions were lashed with frigid weather and the most snowfall seen all season.
And as the wild weather battered the countryside over the weekend, authorities could still not report any confirmed sightings of Dezi Freeman and revealed no fresh leads as to his whereabouts.
Police arrest Dezi Freeman's family
Investigators turned their attention to Mr Freeman's family - his wife Amalia and their 15-year-old son.
On Thursday night, police arrested Ms Freeman and her son during a raid at a Porepunkah home.
They were interviewed and then released without charge, with Victoria Police opting not to divulge details about the basis of their arrests.
On Sunday, Ms Freeman broke her silence in a public statement via her lawyer, offering her condolences to the family and friends of the two dead police officers
"We are truly sorry for your loss, and the suffering and grief that the families, friends and colleagues of Detective Leading Senior Constable Thompson and Senior Constable De Waart are now experiencing. My children and I grieve for the loss of your loved ones," the statement said.
Ms Freeman also took the opportunity to reject any assertion that she shared her husband's extremist views towards police or the government.
"My children and I respect the important work of Victoria Police and do not hold anti-authority views," Ms Freeman said.
She then made a simple plea to her husband.
"I lend my full support to Victoria Police in their search for my husband and will co-operate with Victoria Police in any way that I can," she said.
"Please Dezi, if you see or hear this, call 000 and arrange a surrender plan with the police."
She concluded her statement by urging anyone "harbouring, helping or supporting Dezi" to immediately contact police.
There remains a heavy police presence in the tourist town of Bright. Photo: ABC News/Danielle Bonica
More arrests made near Porepunkah
Authorities reiterated in the days following the shooting that anyone hiding or assisting Dezi Freeman would face criminal charges.
The theory that Mr Freeman is being assisted by a friend or member of his community has remained a possibility for police.
On Friday, police arrested a 61-year-old man in Bright, just outside Porepunkah.
Authorities said it followed the execution of a search warrant at a home, during which guns and cannabis were seized.
When asked whether the arrest was related to the search for Dezi Freeman, a police spokesperson said it would "form part of the line of enquiry".
The man, local blacksmith Steve Mallett, was charged with being a prohibited person possessing an imitation firearm and possessing a drug of dependence.
But Mr Mallett told reporters he had never met Mr Freeman.
He said the only association they had was as fellow members of the Australian Preppers group, which Mr Mallett said he joined because he was interested in self-sustainability.
"I knew why they'd come here," he said after being bailed.
"I'm a biker, we've been targeted … all my life I've been targeted."
Mr Mallett said the arrest by tactical police at his home had made him fearful for both his reputation and his safety.
"Now I'm scared to go up the … main street," he said.
"All the good people in town … that have been smiling at me and making me feel welcome finally,
"They don't want nothing to do with me."
He was bailed to appear before Myrtleford Magistrates' Court on October 3.
Amalia Freeman has publicly pleaded her husband to turn himself in. Photo: A Current Affair
A tourist town gripped by fear
Mr Mallett's fears were reflected by Porepunkah locals, who told the ABC their concerns that their town would forever be coloured by the killings.
A tourist town that would usually be bustling with visitors for the ski season, Porepunkah is instead swarmed with police, tactical teams and journalists.
A team of more than 450 police officers has been deployed in the hunt for the alleged shooter.
Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson (left) and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart were shot and died at the scene in rural Victoria. Photo: Supplied / Victoria Police
When asked about the sustainability of this resourcing over the coming days and weeks, Police Minister Anthony Carbines said police would remain in Porepunkah and do "whatever it takes, for however long it takes" to find Mr Freeman.
During the week, residents described a sombre and tense atmosphere descending on the town of just over 1,000 people.
Businesses and the local primary school were allowed to reopen during the week. But warnings are still in place across a broad swathe of the region.
Authorities say travel in the search area is restricted to essential activities only, with those outside asked to avoid the area altogether.
Mr Freeman was last seen wearing dark green (khaki) tracksuit pants, dark green rain jacket, brown Blundstone boots and reading glasses.
Those who spot Dezi Freeman are instructed to call triple-0 immediately and to not approach the offender.
- ABC
