American Man Connected to Aussie Shooters Secures Plea Bargain with Prosecutors
A US man linked with the perpetrators behind the fatal Wieambilla, Australia shooting that claimed the lives of six individuals – including two officers from Queensland – has accepted a watered-down plea deal.
Resident of Arizona Donald Day Jr. will appear in court on 21 October after finalizing the bargain with US prosecutors.
The individual with prior convictions, known online as “Geronimo's Bones”, is anticipated to plead guilty to a sole charge of unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition in a arrangement to be sanctioned by the court in the current month.
Links to Australian Shooters
Investigators established clear connections between the defendant and Gareth and Stacey Train through online posts.
The Trains, along with Nathaniel Train, killed Queensland police officers Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow, and neighbor Alan Dare at a remote property in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
They were killed in a gun battle with law enforcement, following a extended standoff at the rural site.
American officials stated Day communicated via social media with the Trains during the period of the fatal attack.
He described Queensland officers as “evil, corrupt, and wicked”, and declared they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, informing the Trains he wanted to be at Wieambilla physically.
Legal filings detailed how the couple had posted an apocalyptic video on the video platform after the incident, saying authorities “came to kill us and we killed them”.
“Failing to stand against these evil forces makes one a coward … We will meet you at home, Don. With love,” they expressed.
Firearms Cache and Legal Proceedings
Court documents reveal the defendant accumulated a collection of multiple powerful guns and hundreds of rounds of ammo at a country estate in Heber, Arizona, that was outfitted with a shooting range, gun room and sniper’s nest.
“The firearms and ammunition were kept in the mobile home I shared with S.S., in a room we called the ‘gun room’,” Day admitted in the plea deal submitted in the legal system.
Day said he frequently used both the gun room and the weapons, and also instructed individuals on how to operate the firearms correctly.
The bargain will result in dismissed counts that relate to the alleged making of threats to public figures and FBI agents.
Based on court documents, the individual had been prohibited from possessing weapons and firearms because of his violent criminal history.
Day, who has served 24 months in detention, faces a highest sentence of up to 15 years in jail or a fine of $250,000 (A$381,500), but the agreement specifies he will be sentenced under the minimum range of the legal sentencing standards.
