Overview
- Media outlets citing law‑enforcement sources report that hundreds of child abuse files were later found on Freeman’s electronic devices, which Victoria Police has not confirmed publicly.
- Officers were at Freeman’s Porepunkah property on August 26, 2025 with a warrant for his devices as part of a Wangaratta Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Investigation Team case that sources say included sexual exposure allegations.
- During that visit he shot and killed Constables Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart and injured a third officer before fleeing, which set off a 216‑day manhunt and a $1 million reward for information.
- Special Operations Group officers found him at a Thologolong property on March 30, 2026, negotiated for hours, and shot him after he emerged holding a service pistol taken from a slain officer.
- Investigators are examining whether he received help while on the run, after arresting two associates five days after his death who were later released without charge.