By Judd Boaz, ABC News
Photo: ABC / Supplied
Police believe Dezi Freeman is being helped by people in the community and has urged them to come forward, as the search for the alleged gunman continues into its seventh day.
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 Porepunkah 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 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.
Authorities believe 'people know' where Dezi Freeman is
While police spent the first days of the search urging Freeman to turn himself in, investigators appear to have changed their strategy.
Victoria Police Superintendent Brett Kahan used a press conference on Monday to send a message to anyone in the community helping or even harbouring the fugitive.
"People know the whereabouts of the person who has killed two cops," he said.
"People have chosen - for whatever reason - not to come forward."
Police maintain an active presence in the Porepunkah area. Photo: ABC News
Superintendent Kahan said the offer of a surrender plan made to Freeman was also being extended to any of his potential accomplices.
"Take up that offer, by whichever means you like, whether it be triple-0 or otherwise," he said.
"We will formulate a surrender plan."
On Monday, police opened a mobile police facility at Island Street in the centre of Bright, encouraging members of the public to visit and provide anonymous information.
Police arrest Dezi Freeman's family
Investigators have also turned their attention to Freeman's family - his wife Amalia and their 15-year-old son.
On Thursday night, police arrested 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, 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.
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," Freeman said.
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
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.
When asked about Freeman's involvement in the search, Superintendent Kahan said on Monday that while she was in contact with police, she was not necessarily assisting.
"It's two different things to be speaking with police and cooperating with police," he said.
He could not confirm whether Freeman would face charges in the future.
Dezi Freeman walked into the dense bushland near Porepunkah on foot, and has not been sighted by police since. Photo: ABC News: Danielle Bonica
Another arrest near Porepunkah
Authorities reiterated in the days following the shooting that anyone hiding or assisting Dezi Freeman would face criminal charges.
The theory that 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 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 Mallett told reporters he had never met Freeman.
He said the only association they had was as fellow members of the Australian Preppers group, which 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."
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 3 October.
Victoria Police has deployed more than 450 people in the search for Dezi Freeman. Photo: ABC News: Danielle Bonica
A tourist town gripped by fear
Mallett's fears were reflected by Porepunkah locals, who told the ABC about 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, with authorities saying police will continue to saturate the town.
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 Freeman.
During the week, residents described a sombre and tense atmosphere descending on the town of just over 1000 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.
Freeman was last seen wearing dark green (khaki) tracksuit pants, dark green rain jacket, brown Blundstone boots and reading glasses.
Those who spot Freeman are instructed to call triple-0 immediately and to not approach the offender.
- ABC News
