Inside Dezi Freeman's terrifying hit list of everyday 'enemies'

Inside Dezi Freeman's terrifying hit list of everyday 'enemies'
Source: Daily Mail Online

Worried detectives are checking up on alleged double cop killer Dezi Freeman's hit list of enemies three months after he went on the run.

The Daily Mail can reveal Freeman, 56, whose real name is Desmond Filby, kept a sinister list of all his perceived enemies' names and their home addresses.

Freeman allegedly gunned down Victorian policemen Sergeant Neal Thompson, 59, and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart, 35, in the Victorian High Country on August 26.

The officers were shot as they and eight other officers tried to serve a warrant on him for historic sex offences at his converted bus on a property outside Porepunkah.

Freeman then allegedly stole the dead officers' weapons and fled into the bush, sparking Australia's biggest-ever manhunt.

Despite a $1million reward for information leading to his arrest, there has been no sign of the father-of-three, who was renowned for being anti-government and anti-police.

Daily Mail has previously revealed how Freeman used to meet secretly for years at his rural property with a 30-strong anti-authority network called Truth and Justice.

Group members drew up a list of names and ranks of officers they branded 'police thugs' from the nearby Myrtleford station, openly discussing how to 'name and shame' them.

But Freeman also kept a second, potentially more terrifying list of everyday people, including neighbours, locals and others, who he had a petty grievance with.

The extensive list - confirmed by one of his targets - also details all addresses linked to the perceived hit list of his sworn enemies.

Some live in towns several kilometres away from Porepunkah.

Police have now obtained a copy of Freeman's list and have sent out detectives to check on the wellbeing of the people featured.

Daily Mail is aware of several names on the list, but is choosing not to name them while the alleged killer is still at large.

A Victoria Police spokesperson declined to comment on 'specifics like that during an ongoing investigation'.

Freeman's Truth and Justice group's social media posts revealed the depth of their paranoia and hatred of police.

Freeman was arrested in December 2021, sparking calls from one member for 'all the names of police thugs in Myrtleford so we can name and shame them'.

What followed was a vile roll call of officers, complete with their names, ranks and even email addresses, which Daily Mail is not publishing.

'Leading Constable Xxxx Xxxx, import from Xxxx,' one wrote.
Another member added: 'Apparently Xxxx is now a fully qualified sergeant.'

The group's administrator replied: 'Don't say fully qualified. You are giving too much credit, just say promoted. Choose your words carefully.'

Soon more names were added, including a female sergeant. Another sergeant and an officer were also on the list.

The manhunt for Freeman is now entering its fourth month, with police still no closer to finding him or discovering his fate.

More than 450 officers, including special operations and interstate reinforcements, are scouring the rugged terrain - but not a single trace of him has been found so far.

Freeman's eldest son Koah, 20, has distanced himself from his father's actions, and has told media he believes he is dead.

But he warned his father was more than equipped to survive on the run.

'I'm not sure if you have ever seen the movie Rambo, especially the first Rambo movie. It's like that but ten times' capacity,' he said.

Koah said his father could survive for weeks without food.

Freeman's wife Mali, 42, has since gone to ground with the couple's other young child.

A neighbour's CCTV footage reportedly recorded Koah picking up Ms Freeman, carrying the young child and a plastic bag, nearby moments after Freeman fled.

Koah has declined to comment further, citing legal and police advice, and Ms Freeman has not responded to requests for an interview.

On Monday, a friend of Freeman's revealed his last words before he vanished into the Alpine terrain.

According to The Australian, he told Ms Freeman he would 'see her in heaven' and urged her to run.

A source told the publication that long before the shootout on August 26, Freeman vowed he would 'do anything rather than be caught by police' and even kill himself if cornered.

'He had his own form of spirituality,' the friend said.

Speculation that Freeman had taken his own life first emerged last month when his brother, James 'Jimmy' Filby, took to social media declaring he believed the fugitive was dead somewhere on Mount Buffalo.

Mr Filby is reported to have said he hoped Freeman was 'now at peace' but feared he spent his last hours 'cold, lonely, fearful'.

Locals say police have deployed drones in the area, sparking speculation they are searching for signs of a body.

Detectives insist they are leaving no stone unturned, investigating more than 1,700 pieces of intelligence, including public tips.

Dead or alive, police say there is nothing to indicate Freeman is being assisted by a specific person, though given the difficult terrain and the need for ongoing supplies, this remains a possibility.

Criminal psychologist Tim Watson-Munro said the suicide theory is complicated, arguing Freeman's narcissism makes self-harm unlikely.

Police are leaving no stone unturned in their attempts to find Freeman - if he is still alive

Special Operations Group BearCats were an ominous mainstay in Porepunkah for weeks

'This is a bloke who thinks he's above it all,' he told The Australian.'

Watson-Munro, like police, is keeping an open mind about what has happened, adding that it was possible Freeman had stored food and supplies in the bush.

He said it was possible Freeman was 'so full of himself' that he wouldn't want to end his life, and that it's possible 'he's alive somewhere'.