Four people have been shot – three fatally – and an alleged gunman is on the run in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.
NSW police were called to Bokhara Street, in Lake Cargelligo, at 4.20pm on Thursday and found two people who had been shot.
The woman (25) and the man (19) were treated at the scene but died.
Police said they were also called to Walker Street after reports of another shooting, where they found an injured woman (50) and a man (19). The woman died at the scene, while the man was taken to the hospital in a serious but stable condition.
Authorities said a number of specialist police personnel have been flown in to the area, including a tactical operations unit, negotiators and murder investigators.
The alleged perpetrator, a 37-year-old male named Julian Ingram, who police describe as being of Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander appearance, remained missing and was believed to be “on the move” in a vehicle.
Police described the car as a Ford Ranger utility with council signage, a metal tray back, high visibility markings on the side and an emergency light bar on the roof.
The region’s state MP, Roy Butler, said on Thursday night one of those killed was a pregnant woman.
On Thursday, assistant police commissioner Andrew Holland said all four people were from the area.
“At this stage, police have identified an [alleged] offender who is still at large. We have a large search in the area currently under way,” he said.
Police resources have been brought in from surrounding areas in the western region to apprehend the man, who Mr Holland said had fled in a vehicle and was believed to be “on the move”.
Between 1,300 and 1,500 people live in Lake Cargelligo.
“The public is urged to avoid the area and for local residents to stay inside,” police said in a statement.
Mr Holland said the tragedy would “have a big effect on the community”.
“Any death in a small country town is confronting but . . . a scene where people are shot by firearms is obviously going to make people very, very tense and very concerned,” he said. “The scene faced by the emergency services officers would have been horrendous.”
Butler, the NSW MP for Barwon which takes in Lake Cargelligo, posted on social media that he had learned the news just moments after getting off a plane.
He said “the tragic circumstances will affect everyone in town and across NSW and Australia”.
“We don’t have much detail, but it seems [to be] devastating news. Three people are dead, one, sadly a pregnant woman.” – The Guardian