Queensland Police will investigate the motives behind three individuals who ambushed, shot, and killed two officers investigating a routine missing person report on Dec. 12.
Six individuals in total were killed in the incident that Commissioner Katarina Carroll has called “the largest loss of police life” the state force has suffered in years.
In the aftermath of the siege, Carroll vowed to “unpack these peoples’ lives.”
The police commissioner said the online activity of one of the assailants would also be investigated, including whether the incident was premeditated and if the shooters had extremist links.
“Some of the stuff that’s online from these people, we will investigate what they have been doing not only in recent weeks but in recent years, who they’ve been interacting with ... their online presence, every aspect of this will be thorough,” she told ABC’s 7.30 program on Dec. 13.
One of the shooters, Gareth Train, posted online content including claims the 1996 Port Arthur Massacre—which triggered Australia’s gun buy-back scheme—was a hoax aimed at disarming citizens.
“We are seeing a growing number of individuals and groups that don’t fit on the left-right spectrum at all; instead, they’re motivated by a fear of societal collapse or a specific social or economic grievance or conspiracy,” he said in the 2021 Annual Threat Assessment of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.
Queensland Senator Matt Canavan said conspiracy theories had become more prevalent in recent years, especially with growing public distrust around the pandemic.
“From my perspective and the government’s perspective, it’s always best to try and be as transparent as we can be. The best way to combat conspiracy theories is sunlight and transparency about what governments do,” he told the Today show on Dec. 14.
Ambush Leaves 6 Dead, Including 2 Officers
At around 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 12, four police officers were called to investigate a missing person report for a Nathaniel Train at a property on Wains Rd in Wieambilla, near the remote inland Queensland town of Chincilla.Two young constables, Matthew Arnold, 26, and Rachel McCrow, 29, were hit with a “hail of gunshots” as they jumped a fence to access the house, according to Queensland Police Union President Ian Leavers.
The pair fell, forcing their colleagues to take cover, with one fleeing into the bushes around the property and the other towards the squad car.
A neighbour, 58-year-old Alan Dare, was also gunned down and shot in the back after going out to investigate.
“That is just an absolute tragedy as well,” said Leavers.
The shooters then tried to flush out the female officer who had taken cover in the long grass by setting it on fire.
“She actually believed that she was either going to be shot or she was going to be burnt alive,” Leavers added, later saying the attackers were attempting to coax her into standing up so they could fire on her.
From her position, Officer Keely Brough called for backup and sent goodbye text messages to her family. She had just graduated from the police academy eight weeks earlier.
A local sergeant was able to respond to the distress call and arrived at the scene with 15 more police officers who worked to retrieve the bodies of the slain officers.
Members of the tactical police force and PolAir, the aerial support arm of the police force, were also dispatched.
A siege situation eventually ensued, and an emergency declaration was made encompassing the area of Chinchilla Tara Rd, Wieambilla Rd, Bennetts School Rd, and Mary Street.
By 10:30 p.m. the three attackers had been killed in a firefight with law enforcement.
It was later revealed that the two assailants were brothers Nathaniel Train (the subject of the missing person report) and Gareth Train. The third person is alleged to be Stacey Train, partner of Gareth.
Gun Licensing System May Need Review, Union Says
Police Commissioner Carroll revealed at a press conference that “considerable weaponry” had been found at the scene, saying it was a “miracle” that two officers had managed to escape.The head of the Queensland Police Union, Leavers, said many questions needed to be answered, including how the trio were able to obtain so many weapons.
“Weapons—they are not an issue in the right hands,” Leavers told the Today show on Dec. 14. “But you need to look at the licencing system, the national database, and can we do better?”
“Should it be better where people move from state to state?” he said. “You need uniformity right across the board.
“If things can be done better, all states need to work together, so we have the best system available, so we have the best intelligence, which will keep the community of Queensland and the rest of Australia safe.”
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