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Police killer Nathaniel Train cut border gate in December 2021: report
By Tony Moore
Police killer Nathaniel Train might have cut through locked COVID-border gates near the town of Talwood, south of Goondiwindi, 12 months ago in a four-wheel-drive laden with rifles and army knives.
Residents in the town at the Queensland-New South Wales border have spoken about an incident in December 2021, when a man wearing camouflage clothes was helped by a farmer after being trapped in floodwater.
The ABC reported an account from a farmer “in the Goondiwindi region” who found Train trapped in a four-wheel-drive.
Police declined to comment on reports that accused police murderer Nathaniel Train crossed the Queensland-NSW border in December 2021.
The farmer - whom the ABC said asked not to be named - said Train broke through the border gate on the Boonangar Bridge on Talwood-Boonanga Road about 80 kilometres from Goondiwindi.
Queensland Police would not answer specific questions on the allegation.
Neither Goondiwindi mayor Lawrence Springborg nor Goondiwindi councillor Susie Kelly were aware of the incident.
Local police allegedly seized rifles from Train’s 4WD, the ABC reported.
The incident was 12 months before Nathaniel Train, his older brother Gareth and Gareth’s wife Stacey gunned down two police constables, Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold, and the Trains’ neighbour Alan Dare at Wieambilla, near Tara, before being shot themselves.
A missing persons report was first issued for Nathaniel Train by NSW authorities on December 4.
Wieambilla is about 230 kilometres - about 2½ hours’ drive - north-west of Talwood.
The farmer told the ABC Train tried to “ram through the border gates” in a black Toyota Landcruiser and when that failed, “used an angle grinder to cut through the padlock”.
Accused police murderer Nathaniel Train allegedly broke through COVID-19 enforced border gates on the Boonangar Bridge over the Macintyre River in December 2021, the ABC reported.Credit: Google Maps
Train is reported by the ABC to have been dressed in camouflage gear and allegedly dumped rifles into a nearby creek close.
The farmer told the ABC local police came to retrieve the rifles.
“He said that among the items Train had ditched in the creek were at least three firearms – short scrub sort of weapons and ammunition,” the ABC reported.
Queensland Police said the Ethical Standards Command was leading an investigation into the shooting at Wieambilla on December 12.
“This is a complex and thorough coronial investigation overviewed by the Crime and Corruption Commission and will be reported to the State Coroner,” a police statement read.
“While the matter is currently being investigated, and respecting the sensitivities of the families involved, it would be inappropriate for the QPS to provide further comment at this time.”
The ABC report said documents found near the vehicle included some that identified the man as Nathaniel Train and outlined his work history at a NSW school.
A map shows that the location of the Boonangar Bridge over the Macintyre River, south-west of Goondiwindi, and Wieambilla, where the mass shooting of six people took place on December 12, are about 230 kilometres apart.Credit: Google Maps
Brisbane Times has been unable to independently corroborate the report with police, or the Talwood farmer, whose telephone went repeatedly unanswered on Sunday.
However, Talwood businessman John Moriandi, who operates the general store, said he was aware of the talk.
“I had heard similar stories as to what the ABC has reported,” Moriandi said.
The businessman said he had heard that Train had “flooded his vehicle, and his brother or someone had come and got him”.
“But, really I just don’t know because I wasn’t there. But that is what people are saying.”
Springborg earlier on Sunday said the border gate at the Boonangar Bridge over the Macintyre River was among several Queensland-NSW border crossings that were frequently “driven through”, or “where the padlocks were cut” in December 2021.
“It wasn’t uncommon,” Springborg said.
He said several border crossings had cameras and identifying factors for vehicles - including number plate details - and the council gave all information to police.
Meanwhile, two men from Tara, a 25-year-old and a 23-year-old, were on Sunday charged with looting and trespassing after allegedly trying to steal two motorbikes from the Trains’ property in Wieambilla.
They also face charges of supplying cannabis, unrelated to alleged motorbike thefts.