Threatening emails not handed to Qld police before officers killed

Threatening emails from a man who went on to fatally shoot three people in Queensland were not handed over by NSW Police due to procedural requirements, a coroner has heard.

Coroner Terry Ryan, who is investigating the fatal shooting of six people at Wieambilla in rural Queensland, heard evidence on Tuesday from NSW Police on their search for missing man Nathaniel Train, 46, who would later feature in the killings.

Ryan heard NSW Police obtained emails from Gareth Train, 47, detailing his family’s hatred of police and authority.

Constables Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold were shot dead during an ambush in Wieambilla.Credit: Queensland Police

Referring to police, Gareth said: “I am sure when the bully men find Nathaniel [Train], he will greet them as they deserve.”

Detective Senior Constable Richard Gozman, from the NSW Police missing persons registry, testified that he had not personally seen the emails, but they would have been handed over to Queensland Police if the case was formally transferred interstate.

He said he changed the risk assessment for Nathaniel to “high risk to himself” but not to police or members of the public.

Nathaniel (left), Stacey and Gareth Train held extremist religious views.

“It was on the basis of his [cardiac] health condition. The other thing that stood out to me is the length of time he had not been seen or spoken with,” Gozman said.

The emails were forwarded to NSW Police early on December 12, 2022, and were not reviewed by an officer or uploaded to their database until late that morning.

That afternoon, Nathaniel and Gareth Train shot dead two junior Queensland constables at their Wieambilla property, west of Brisbane.

The supervising officer on Nathaniel’s missing persons case, Detective Senior Constable Jordan Hammerton, testified on Tuesday that he did not read Gareth’s latest emails until he saw news about the police shootings.

“I was busy over the weekend. I was the only detective on shift that Sunday,” he said.

Ryan heard that before the shootings, Hammerton instructed two other officers to ask Queensland Police to attend the Wieambilla property to see if Gareth would help find his brother.

“Phone tower data showed he was last in that area close to his brother’s house ... We had exhausted what we could through investigations in NSW,” Hammerton said.

Ryan heard senior police said officers did not have the “solid evidence” required to transfer Nathaniel’s case to Queensland.

The Wieambilla house where six people were killed in December 2022.Credit: Nine

“The example I was given was there needed to be a [cash withdrawal] on the missing person’s account with CCTV from the bank showing that person,” Hammerton said.

Four Queensland officers attended the property on December 12, 2022, to find Nathaniel.

The officers also had a warrant to arrest him for illegally crossing the NSW border during COVID-19 lockdowns, and for firearms offences.

Hammerton said the basic file on Nathaniel’s missing persons report was provided to Queensland Police, which noted that Gareth was “paranoid and had a dislike of police”.

He said he did not specifically flag to Queensland Police any potential risks to officers.

“I just provided the information ... it is in the paragraph for them to see,” he said.

AAP