A legal challenge has been initiated against Victoria Police by Jeremy Sloan, who alleges he and his partner Sarah Naylor were subjected to a traumatic arrest at gunpoint during the extensive search for fugitive Dezi Freeman. The incident occurred in October of last year near Undera in northern Victoria when police intercepted the couple at a property.
According to Sloan’s account reported by the ABC, law enforcement officers held them at gunpoint during the arrest before conducting a search of his parents’ residence. The legal action, formally lodged last Thursday, seeks compensation for what Sloan describes as significant psychological harm resulting from the encounter.
Victoria Police has indicated through official channels that they had not received formal legal documentation regarding the case at the time of media inquiries. The controversial arrest occurred during one of Victoria’s most extensive manhunts for Freeman, who stands accused of fatally shooting two police officers—Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart-Hottart—during a warrant service attempt in Porepunkah on August 26, 2025.
The alleged shooter subsequently disappeared into bushland and has not been sighted since the incident. After months of intensive searching involving specialized resources including cadaver dogs trained to detect human remains, investigators now believe Freeman is likely deceased. Detective Inspector Adam Tilley stated during a February update that survival prospects for the fugitive appeared highly unlikely.