Eyewitnesses recall how alleged Darwin gunman’s rampage unfolded

Darwin locals have recalled how Ben Hoffman allegedly loaded his gun and started firing. “He was a skinny whitefella, about six foot, with a pump-action”. He was also looking for someone.

Darwin is a small place. And last night, it felt especially small as a horror show played out before multiple witnesses in a short rampage that started and ended at the main crossroads into the city.

There, where the Stuart Highway and McMinn St intersect at the entrance to the city, people watched real-time as the alleged shooter drove his white extended cab ute to the lights, apparently having agreed to surrender after killing four and wounding one.

He was put down by police, legs waving wildly as he was tasered.

He was believed to have been wearing an ankle bracelet after he was released on parole in January.

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‘I was hearing people being shot dead’: witness

Suspected Darwin shooter Ben Hoffman. Picture: Supplied

Police cordon off a block of units where a person was shot by a gunman in the suburb of The Gardens in Darwin. Picture: AAP

Just metres from this crossroads is a small cul-de-sac known as Finniss St. There’s a panel beaters, a taxi refuelling stop and a couple of cheap motels, including the Palms. It has long been known as a place where women ply their trade.

This is where the killings began, with the alleged shooter blasting his way through the Palms Motel.

Last night, besides a swarm of police investigators, there were two main groups on Finniss Street, trying to understand what had happened. One was 20 or so Lebanese men, anxiously awaiting news.

One man said his cousin had been shot dead inside the Palms. He said he believed the killer was unknown to his cousin.

Police cordon off Palms Motel in Darwin. Picture: AAP

On the other side of the road from the Palms is the Galawu Hostel, where Aborigines stay when they come in from across the Top End for medical procedures.

Sitting there was a group of men and women, still in shock. They did not want to give their names, though the man was safely in custody.

They were sitting on the ground outside the hostel smoking cigarettes when they heard the first bangs, just before 6pm. “We heard him firing about eight shots,” said one man.

“We heard noises. I thought it was someone throwing things. The old man here said it might be a gun. He allegedly loaded his gun and started firing. We all ran inside. He was a skinny whitefella, about six foot, with a pump-action.”

They heard no screaming, though they were just metres from where it happened. They said the man was walking about with intent. His gun was not aimed in the air but pointed straight ahead.

A young indigenous woman said she had just returned from the emergency department at Royal Darwin Hospital where she said she had seen the alleged shooter being brought in by police.

Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw addresses the media during a press conference in Darwin. Picture: AAP

“I saw him in the emergency ward and his face was swollen. My niece was speaking to him.

The niece said: “He had a big smile on his face. He was scrawny. He had a whole heap of blood on his face.”

The girls said they had heard the man had been stabbed earlier in the day and gone out seeking revenge. That has not been confirmed.

But according to all, they felt certain he was looking for someone in particular. The name “Alex” kept coming up in accounts.

After blasting up Finniss St, the man took off in his ute, circled down towards the casino then shot up Gardens Hill Crescent, where he targeted a specific apartment. A man was killed.

Then he drove a short distance to the Buffs Club, short for the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes. It is an institution known for cheap counter dinners and is favoured by older long-time locals.

A body lay out in the open at the back of the club.

Then he drove another two kilometres to Jolly St, another small back road in a semi-industrial inner-city precinct, where he marched into an apartment. NT News reporter Natasha Emeck got a remarkable exclusive within the chaos.

Police outside an industrial complex where a person was shot by a gunman in the suburb of Woolner in Darwin. Picture: AAP

She spoke to Johnny Reid, who was in the apartment watching television when the shooter stormed in.

“He busted in and looked right at me,” he said. “I looked at him and thought: ‘f**k this is it’. I thought I was dead for sure.

“I asked him what he was doing but he went right past me and shot my mate. His body is still in there.”

It was all over quickly.

On Finniss St, they were counting their blessings amid the toll. One of the young Aboriginal women said her aunty had come out of the hostel and had a shotgun pointed straight at her. “They locked eye contact,” the niece said.

“She is really traumatised.”

Originally published as Eyewitnesses recall how alleged Darwin gunman’s rampage unfolded