<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Police likely believed cop killer </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/dezi-freeman-live-updates-porepunkah-police-shootings-latest-news-headlines/c81f2d34-62f7-4fa2-b516-801af339aed3" rel="" target="" title="Dezi Freeman"><span>Dezi Freeman</span></a><span> was dead before they were led to a rural </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/victoria" rel="" target="" title="Victorian"><span>Victorian</span></a><span> property where they engaged in a deadly standoff with the fugitive this morning, a former </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/victoria-police" rel="" target="" title="police"><span>police</span></a><span> negotiator says.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Freeman was shot dead on a remote Thologolong property, near the Victoria-NSW border, around 8.30am after three hours of negotiations, Victoria Police said today.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Police were reportedly tipped-off to his whereabouts by an associate.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/dezi-freeman-shot-reports-emerge-fugitive-killed-by-armed-police/77941806-6f56-4584-a39f-f5c57263a337" target="_blank"><strong><span>Fugitive gunman Dezi Freeman shot dead by police after seven months on the run</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Last month, police led a thorough five-day search for Freeman's body in dense bushland across dense bushland in Mt Buffalo National Park based on the "strong" belief the cop killer was deceased.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Rumours have since swirled that Victoria Police may have announced their search for Freeman's body as a tactic to make him believe their trail had run cold.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But former police negotiator and Macquarie University Criminology lecturer Dr Vincent Hurley believes police would not risk undermining public confidence in the investigation.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/police-likely-believed-dezi-freeman-was-dead-until-tipoff-former-police-negotiator-says/30a5f73f-8fc4-43fe-8938-a51e9a7f173d" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They would not have said that if they did not believe at the time that that was a likely outcome," Hurley said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Regardless of whether they are police or victims or not, when two people have been murdered and police from literally every state in territory in Australia has gone down to assist, they're not going to come out and say something that they don't think at the time is true.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"If it was said intentionally incorrectly, then what message does that send to the public about the police wanting further assistance in the future about any crime?</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"In my 30 years in the police force and 22 years has a detective... you would never do that because of the consequences of it is just catastrophic."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/dezi-freeman-son-condemns-celebrations/dab054d9-f2ee-460e-8daf-cf624fc1e5e3" rel="" target="" title="'That's still my father': Dezi Freeman's son slams 'disgusting' comments celebrating cop killer's death"><strong><span>'That's still my father': Dezi Freeman's son slams 'disgusting' comments celebrating cop killer's death</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>Freeman may have been surveilled for a week before shooting</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Police may have been watching Dezi Freeman for as long as one week before an hours-long standoff led to his shooting death this morning, Hurley believes.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They would want to know if anyone was helping him and they'd want to know his daily routine," Hurley revealed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They would not have gone in at the first sight of him, at all. It would pose too many unacceptable risks.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It could even be that the police had modelled or done scenarios based on them finding him, not necessarily in a container, but in a house or something like that."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Bush revealed Freeman was armed and wrapped in a blanket when he "exited" a shipping container on a rural Thologolong property earlier this morning, hours after police descended on the acreage around 5.30am.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Hurley believes police would have tried to reason with the so-called sovereign citizen to apprehend him alive.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They would've surrounded [the shipping container] and the negotiator would've said to him that 'you are surrounded, there's no chance of you escaping, we've got a cordon around the area'," Hurley said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Then they would've given him the options and they would've tried to negotiate some type of reason with him to give up without a fight, for example.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Ultimately, they want to get him before the court.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They want to get him before the court to answer to the crimes, regardless of who the victims are, so it would never have been a case of retribution. Never."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/technology/apple-almost-went-broke--now-its-celebrating-50-years/0a597f3d-d703-45c4-9a75-44602dec6a8e" target="_blank"><strong><span>Apple almost went broke – now it's celebrating 50 years</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They would have told him clearly that he was surrounded, that the options are come out, we're not gonna hurt you, we want to get you before the courts. All the usual things to reassure him.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"But given his ideology as a sovereign citizen, he would have a somewhat distorted view of what he thought would be the appropriate outcome.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Less than three weeks ago police informed the public they would not press charges against Freeman's wife Mali and two others after they were interviewed for obstruction of police.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>That too was a coincidental development in the timeline of events that led to Freeman's death.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I don't think, in my view, that they would've had him under surveillance for that long," Hurley said when asked whether police could have outlawed charges in a bid to appeal to Freeman.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We'll never know, but I speculate it would be more coincidental than anything else."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>Fears fugitive may act as example to others</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The self-described sovereign citizen's death has come as a relief to many, but Hurley fears his ability to evade capture for more than seven months may spur on others who subscribe to dangerous ideologies.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The fact that he survived seven months or six months by himself, other people like-minded to the sovereign citizen or preppers purpose, they'll be preparing now for longer than seven months," Hurley said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><em><span>NEVER MISS A STORY:</span></em></strong><span> </span><em><span>Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><strong><em><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>Apple</span></em></strong></a><span> </span><strong><em><span>and</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nineNewsAlerts.nine.com&amp;hl=en_AU&amp;pli=1" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>Google Play</span></em></strong></a></li><li><strong><em><span>Make 9News your preferred source on Google by</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://9.nine.com.au/8x987w" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>ticking this box here</span></em></strong></a></li><li><strong><em><span>Sign up to</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://login.nine.com.au/edm?client_id=nineatnine" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>our breaking newsletter here</span></em></strong></a></li></ul></div></div>