Brett Forte death inquest: Gunman Ricky Maddison shocked to learn he’d killed cop he shot at

The paranoid gunman who shot Brett Forte held officers at bay for more than 20 hours, and did not initially know the Toowoomba policeman had died, an inquest has heard.

Paranoid gunman Ricky Maddison was surprised when he was told he had killed police officer Brett Forte, as negotiators tried at least 85 times to make him surrender and come out from his stronghold.

Sen Const Forte, a father-of-three, was shot and killed on May 29, 2017, during a low-speed pursuit near Toowoomba by Maddison, who had been evading police for weeks.

Maddison was later shot following a 20-hour siege with Special Emergency Response Team officers.

During the siege Maddison shot at police repeatedly, including the Polair police helicopter, the inquest into their deaths has heard today.

He was in a stronghold was a tin shed with a main living area, kitchen, two small bedrooms and had a shower and toilet “camping arrangement” at the back. It had a verandah on the front.

Negotiators were then able to get a mobile phone to Maddison via a robot.

Paranoid gunman Ricky Maddison killed police officer Brett Forte.

Detective Senior Sergeant Anthony Buxton, who was part of an ethical standards review, said that during a conversation with a negotiator during the siege Maddison’s reaction was “one of surprise” when he heard that he had killed Sen Const Forte.

“He said something like ‘first things first, how’s that young officer from this afternoon?’ Sen Sgt Buxton said.

“And the negotiator responded ‘he’s not good, he passed away’.

“And there was a long pause,” Sen Sgt Buxton said, adding Maddison paused for 10 to 12 seconds.

“He (Maddison) asked ‘What was his name?’”

“The negotiator told him Brett Forte.

“He said ‘Brett?’”

Senior Constable Brett Forte.

Sen Sgt Buxton said the negotiator responded: “Brett Forte”.

He said Maddison asked: “Where was he from? Did he have anything to do with my case?”

“And the negotiator said no,” Sen Sgt Buxton said.

“At that point he said ‘I’m very sorry for the family.’”

Snr Sgt Buxton said Maddison raised the officer’s death a couple of times but said he didn’t appear to make the connection to Mr Forte to who he had briefly spoken to on the phone on the day he shot him.

During negotiations Maddison told police he had “lots of food” and told them “you’re going to run out of ammunition before I do”.

During the night, Maddison became paranoid and believed people were moving around his stronghold. Negotiators continued talking to him.

He later came outside the next day about 6.30am with two firearms and said he was testing police to see if they would shoot him, before going back inside.

During the siege police considered disabling his car and motorcycles. A robot was taken to the back of the shed to stop him leaving on one of the motorcycles.

Just after 11am, Maddison came out of the stronghold and sprayed bullets in the direction of a SERT vehicle, which was hit. Two of the officers fired back.

Maddison was shot in the shoulder and then he ran a distance and then lay prone in the grass.

Armoured vehicles began moving forward at that point and then Maddison got up and began running again.

Detective Senior Sergeant Anthony Buxton appears at the inquest into the death of policeman Brett Forte, and the man who shot him.

Maddison was shot in the chest by a SERT operative from 75m away and was declared dead at 11.16am on May 30.

He was carrying 385 rounds.

During a search of the property police found six guns, an antique pistol, hundreds of more rounds of ammunition and items used for drug production including chemicals.

They found a note that appeared to be a suicide note in his car, Sen Sgt Buxton said.

He said it was a note to Maddison’s family and had past-tense terminology indicating he was “not expecting to survive whatever was coming at the time he wrote the note”.

“Past-tense terminology, I’ve had a good life, don’t be sad for me, that sort of sentiment,” Snr Sgt Buxton said.

He said the letter said the words to the effect of “I‘ve never back away from a fight”.

“There was no references to the murder of Senior Constable Forte,” he said.

“Which again he did not hesitate in discussing a number of times during negotiations, so that leads me to the thought that perhaps the death had not occured at the time, or at least he’s not aware that it had occurred at that time.

“He externally had some indication that he was probably going to go to jail and spoke about trumped up charges from the police.”