Daniel Lucas Baumgart shot in head at Maryborough, manhunt for shooter

Police have arrested a 45-year-old man after a convicted drug dealer survived an alleged bullet to the head.  

Emergency services at scene of disturbance in Maryborough.

A 45-year-old man has been charged with the attempted murder of Maryborough’s Daniel Baumgart.

It comes after this publication exclusively revealed the man shot at a Maryborough unit on Monday night was Mr Baumgart, the red-haired, death-cheating local identity known as “Russell Mussell”.

On Wednesday Detective Senior Sergeant Mick Polit told reporters Mr Baumgart had “shockingly” spoken to police and provided a version of events that was consistent with other witnesses.

He said Mr Baumgart was not under police protection in hospital and was not believed to be in any danger.

At the time, the search was continuing for the alleged gunman, Det Snr Sgt Polit said.

He said it was believed the alleged shooter was being harboured by associates in Maryborough and he also had links to the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane.

“We’re exploring all those avenues as we speak,” Det Snr Sgt Polit said.

A convicted drug dealer who has racked up tens of thousands in unpaid fines, Daniel previously told a court he began injecting hard drugs at 15 and as far back as April, 2012 was warned by then Hervey Bay Magistrate Graeme Tatnell “you just haven’t got any future in this town”.

In the early 2000s, he was the former boyfriend of Monique Clubb, a troubled Hervey Bay woman who has been missing, presumed murdered since 2013 (there is no suggestion Daniel or his family had any involvement in her death) and last seen at Beenleigh.

He made statewide headlines when he was the subject of a two-week manhunt following the death of Michael Hartley, whose body was discovered in a ditch at Ross Ck, near Gympie in 2020.

Dramatic footage then emerged of police arresting him at Mackay Harbour.

He and his brother James Baumgart were both charged with Mr Hartley’s murder.

They spent a significant amount of time on remand until, in 2023, the murder charges were dropped after the court heard Mr Hartley had underlying, terminal liver failure and it could also not be ruled out his fatal injuries were caused by the ute crash.

It is understood authorities believed there was no prospect of getting a conviction.

Michael Hartley (main image) was found dead on the roadside in 2020. Daniel Baumgart (insets) was charged with murder but the charge was later dropped.

Incredibly, Daniel, who as of Tuesday night’s alleged shooting is understood to be missing part of an ear and has significant injuries to the back of his skull, not only survived emergency surgery but also, a near-fatal stroke early last year.

In a post to Facebook in February, 2024, Jim Baumgart wrote that his “brother Daniel aka Russell Mussell” was in the ICU at Hervey Bay hospital with “a day or two to live”.

“If you want to say goodbye or visit him … he has brain damage and will be taken off the ventilator in the next few days,” the post read.

“It would mean a lot to him and our family”.

Ultimately, Daniel pulled through.

He is not the only of the Baumgart brothers to have cheated death with James also suffering a stab wound to the neck during the 2020 altercation with Mr Hartley.

On Tuesday morning Daniel, whose identity was confirmed by multiple sources, was in a serious but stable condition.

Speaking to reporters at the Maryborough Police Station on Tuesday, Det Snr Sgt Polit, said officers believed the alleged shooting, which took place in a unit complex on Fort St about 9pm, was “targeted”, that the alleged offender was “after” his victim and went to the property “with the intention of inflicting that wound”.

He said police had declared a crime scene, taken a number of witness statements and collected forensic evidence and were “pumping all resources” into finding the alleged offender and the gun.

He said while investigations into the motive were ongoing, the victim was known to police for drugs and other criminal activity and officers were hoping to speak with him.

A neighbour, who asked not to be named, told this publication he heard the shot ring out and dialled triple-0.

He said he saw a man, who he believed to be the shooter, flee the scene on a scooter and that while the area was prone to occasional drama, it was still “shocking” for a shooting to take place.

Anyone with information that could assist investigations, including any CCTV or dashcam footage in the area at the time, is urged to contact police.