US Individual Linked to Australian Shooters Strikes Plea Deal with Federal Attorneys
A US man associated with the perpetrators behind the fatal Wieambilla attack that took six lives – among them two Queensland police officers – has accepted a less severe plea agreement.
Resident of Arizona Donald Day Jr will face court on October 21 after finalizing the bargain with American authorities.
The individual with prior convictions, referred to online as “Geronimo's Bones”, is expected to plead guilty to a single charge of illegally owning guns and bullets in a deal to be approved by the judiciary this month.
Links to Aussie Gunmen
Investigators confirmed clear connections between the defendant and the Train couple through online posts.
The Trains, along with Nathaniel Train, killed Queensland police officers Arnold and McCrow, and neighbor Alan Dare at a remote property in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
They were killed in a final shootout with police, following a protracted siege at the rural site.
American officials said the accused corresponded via online platforms with the perpetrators around the time of the deadly ambush.
Day referred to Queensland officers as “evil, corrupt, and wicked”, and declared they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, telling them he wanted to be at the scene physically.
Legal filings detailed how Gareth and Stacey Train had uploaded an end-times 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 Court Case
Court documents reveal Day accumulated a collection of multiple powerful guns and numerous bullets of ammunition at a rural property in Heber, AZ, that was equipped with a shooting range, weapons room and sniper hide.
“The guns and ammo were stored in the trailer I occupied with S.S., within a space we named the 'gun room',” Day said in the plea deal submitted in the legal system.
Day stated he frequently used both the weapons storage and the firearms, and also trained individuals on how to operate the firearms correctly.
The plea deal will lead to dismissed counts that relate to the accused issuing threats to public figures and FBI agents.
Based on legal files, Day had been banned from possessing guns and arms because of his history of violent crimes.
The defendant, who has served 24 months in custody, could receive a highest sentence of up to 15 years imprisonment in prison or a fine of $250,000 (A$381,500), but the plea deal stipulates he will be sentenced under the low end of the legal sentencing standards.
