US Man Connected to Aussie Gunmen Strikes Plea Deal with Prosecutors
An American citizen linked with the culprits behind the fatal Wieambilla, Australia shooting that claimed the lives of six individuals – among them two Queensland police officers – has accepted a watered-down plea deal.
Arizona-based Donald Day Jr will face court on October 21 after striking the bargain with US prosecutors.
The individual with prior convictions, referred to online as “Geronimo’s Bones”, is expected to admit guilt to a sole offense of illegally owning firearms and ammunition in a deal to be approved by the judiciary this month.
Links to Aussie Gunmen
Authorities established direct links between Day and the Train couple through digital communications.
This couple, along with Gareth’s brother Nathaniel, murdered Queensland police officers Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow, and neighbor Alan Dare at a isolated location in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
The Trains were killed in a gun battle with police, following a extended standoff at the rural site.
American officials said Day communicated via online platforms with the perpetrators during the period of the fatal attack.
Day described Queensland police as “evil, corrupt, and wicked”, and said they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, telling the Trains he wanted to be at the scene in person.
Court documents outlined how Gareth and Stacey Train had uploaded an apocalyptic video on YouTube after the incident, stating authorities “came to kill us and we killed them”.
“If you don’t defend yourself against these devils and demons, you’re a coward … we’ll see you at home, Don. Love you,” the Trains expressed.
Firearms Cache and Legal Proceedings
Legal records show the defendant accumulated a cache of multiple powerful guns and hundreds of rounds of ammo at a rural property in Heber, Arizona, that was equipped with a gun 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 filed in the legal system.
Day said he regularly accessed both the weapons storage and the firearms, and also instructed others on how to use the guns properly.
The plea deal will lead to charges dropped that relate to the alleged making of threats to officials and federal agents.
Based on court documents, the individual had been prohibited from possessing weapons and firearms because of his history of violent crimes.
Day, who has completed two years in detention, could receive a maximum penalty of up to 15 years imprisonment in prison or a fine of US$250,000 (A$381,500), but the plea deal stipulates he will be sentenced under the minimum range of the sentencing guidelines.
