US Man Connected to Australian Gunmen Secures Plea Deal with Federal Attorneys
A US man associated with the culprits behind the fatal Wieambilla attack that claimed six lives – among them two Queensland police officers – has accepted a watered-down plea agreement.
Resident of Arizona Donald Day Jr. will appear in court on October 21 after striking the bargain with US prosecutors.
The individual with prior convictions, known online as “Geronimo's Bones”, is expected to admit guilt to a sole offense of illegally owning guns and bullets 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 the Train couple through online posts.
This couple, along with Gareth’s brother Nathaniel, killed officers from Queensland Arnold and McCrow, and neighbor Alan Dare at a isolated location in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
The Trains were killed in a final shootout with police, following a protracted siege at the regional property.
US prosecutors stated the accused communicated via social media with the Trains during the period of the fatal attack.
Day referred to Queensland police as “malignant, malformed and malevolent”, and declared they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, informing them he wanted to be at the scene physically.
Legal filings outlined how the couple had posted an end-times video on YouTube after the incident, stating police “attempted to kill us, and we retaliated”.
“If you don’t defend yourself against these devils and demons, you’re a coward … We will meet you at home, Don. With love,” they expressed.
Weapons Stockpile and Court Case
Court documents reveal Day stockpiled a cache of multiple powerful guns and hundreds of rounds of ammunition at a rural property in Heber, Arizona, that was equipped with a gun range, weapons room and sniper hide.
“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 filed in court.
He stated he regularly accessed both the gun room and the weapons, and also trained individuals on how to use the guns correctly.
The bargain will result in dismissed counts that pertain to the alleged making of threats to officials and federal agents.
Based on court documents, the individual had been banned from owning weapons and firearms because of his violent criminal history.
Day, who has completed two years in detention, faces a maximum penalty of up to 15 years in jail or a fine of $250,000 (A$381,500), but the agreement specifies he will be judged under the minimum range of the sentencing guidelines.
