US Individual Connected to Aussie Gunmen Strikes Plea Deal with Federal Attorneys
An American citizen associated with the perpetrators behind the fatal Wieambilla shooting that took six lives – among them two Queensland police officers – has accepted a less severe plea deal.
Resident of Arizona Donald Day Jr will appear in court on October 21 after striking the plea deal with American authorities.
The individual with prior convictions, referred to online as “Geronimo’s Bones”, is expected to plead guilty to a single offense of illegally owning guns and bullets in a arrangement to be sanctioned by the judiciary this month.
Connections to Australian Shooters
Investigators confirmed direct links between the defendant and the Train couple through digital communications.
This couple, along with Nathaniel Train, murdered Queensland police officers Arnold and McCrow, and neighbour Alan Dare at a remote property in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
They were fatally shot in a gun battle with police, following a protracted siege at the regional property.
American officials stated the accused communicated via online platforms with the Trains during the period of the deadly ambush.
He described Queensland police as “malignant, malformed and malevolent”, and said they should be shown “no mercy whatsoever”, telling them he wanted to be at Wieambilla physically.
Legal filings outlined how the couple had posted an apocalyptic recording on the video platform after the incident, saying authorities “came to kill us and we killed them”.
“Failing to stand against these evil forces makes one a coward … We will meet you at home, Don. With love,” the Trains expressed.
Weapons Stockpile and Legal Proceedings
Legal records show the defendant stockpiled a collection of nine high-powered firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammo at a country estate in Heber, Arizona, that was equipped with a gun range, weapons room and sniper hide.
“The firearms and ammunition were kept in the mobile home I shared with S.S., in a room we called the ‘gun room’,” Day admitted in the agreement submitted in court.
He said he regularly accessed both the gun room and the weapons, and also instructed individuals on how to operate the guns properly.
The plea deal will result in charges dropped that relate to the accused making of threats to officials and federal agents.
Based on legal files, the individual had been prohibited from possessing guns and arms because of his history of violent crimes.
The defendant, who has served 24 months in detention, faces a highest sentence of up to 15 years in prison or a penalty of US$250,000 (A$381,500), but the plea deal specifies he will be sentenced under the minimum range of the legal sentencing standards.