A fleeing man armed with a high-powered rifle bounced off a trampoline before taking a father and his young son hostage in a tense standoff with police.
The 26-year-old man, from Snake Valley in western Victoria near Ballarat, remains in hospital after Victoria Police’s Special Operations Group used an attack dog to take him down.
The camouflage-clad elite officers were seen on the roof of neighboring houses in Weir Views, west of Melbourne, where the gunman had taken the father and his one-year-old son hostage.
Superintendent Michael Cruse said the man allegedly fired multiple shots at police after stealing a 70-year-old woman’s car about 2.30pm on Tuesday in Snake Valley.
The man used that car to reach the Melton area, where police deployed a police helicopter to track him for more than 100 kilometers to the Weir Views house, where a dramatic siege took place.
Neighbors on Leon Drive told media that the gunman was seen playing on a trampoline in a nearby backyard before forcing his way into the home.
Superintendent Cruse confirmed that the man had been observed behaving strangely immediately before taking the hostages, but did not go into specific details.
‘There was a time when he was behaving erratically in the backyard of the establishment, yes,’ he admitted.
Elite-clad police officers approached the suspected gunman after he was tackled by a dog.
Police further allege that the man shot at officers who first approached him in the area.
‘We will allege that police were shot at. “The police were able to retreat and again, very fortunately, they were not injured,” Mr Cruse said.
Once sheltered inside, the man allegedly refused to allow his hostages to leave for two and a half hours.
The surrounding area was sealed off and residents were told to stay indoors while SOG officers surrounded the property.
Cruse said police negotiators worked for hours to encourage the man to leave peacefully, but it was advice he refused to accept.
Shortly after 6pm, police believed they had made a breakthrough and the gunman suggested he would allow his hostages to escape unharmed.
But when the time came, police allege the man opened fire in a direction yet to be determined.
«At that moment the police tactically entered the house. “We will allege at that point that another shot was fired at the police entry team and they were able to deploy a police dog and take down the offender,” Mr Cruse said.
In a stroke of luck for the criminal, Cruse revealed that one of the elite officers responded, but missed the man.
SOG snipers prepare to eliminate the gunman on a nearby rooftop.
A SOG officer helps the man and his little boy escape from the house amidst wild scenes.
Instead, the man suffered little more than a dog bite and remains in the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
He is expected to be released Wednesday afternoon, where he will face multiple charges, including conduct endangering life.
The father and his son were physically unharmed in the incident but are feared to have been traumatized by the experience, as was the elderly carjacking victim.
Supt Cruse paid tribute to the bravery of the SOG members in ending the siege without loss of life.
“All the police officers who were present yesterday have a wealth of experience in different areas,” he said.
“The Special Operations Group trains for these incidents and it was reassuring to have their assistance there.”
Superintendent Cruse said it was “extremely fortunate” that no police officers were killed in the incident.
“The crime is very serious and completely unacceptable that police officers have been exposed to this type of danger,” he said.
“That said, we had a really solid plan and we tried to make it as planned and safe as possible. But it’s fortunate.
Leon Drive in Wer Views was closed as police surrounded the area
Police are now working to determine how many shots were fired by the man and how many were aimed at him.
“We’re not sure of the exact number of shots that were fired…we’re just working on it at the moment,” Superintendent Cruse added.
“We believe there are some unaccounted discharges and we are just trying to establish where they were directed and what the motive was.”
None of the shots hit any police officers, but Superintendent Cruse said all police officers involved in the drama were receiving counseling in the coming days.