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Locals from two Queensland towns have been living in a waking nightmare after a pair of police officers and a neighbour were brutally executed in their community.
Tara and Chinchilla residents have broken their silence on the horrific ambush that unfolded nearby on a rural Wieambilla property on Monday.
Constables Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold were killed alongside neighbour Alan Dare, who had lived in the area for years.
Locals said there had always been ‘some roads you just don’t go down’ in the remote town but that the community was typically quick to help each other out.
Locals from two Queensland towns have been living in a waking nightmare after a pair of police officers and a neighbour were brutally executed in their community
Queensland police officer Constable Matthew Arnold who was killed in a shooting at Wieambilla
But in the wake of the shooting, and the tragic circumstances that saw three innocent people killed, tensions are high and many are now second guessing if they would be as inclined to help next time a neighbour was in trouble.
The two Tara-based officers had attended the property along with their Chinchilla-based colleagues, Constables Keely Brough and Randall Kirk, after reports came from NSW Police about missing former school principal Nathaniel Train.
The four officers were ambushed by Nathaniel, his brother Gareth and his wife Stacey.
NCA NewsWire understands the Train family had lured the officers to the property in order to cause as much injury as possible and had every intention of killing the unsuspecting officers, all aged under 30 years old.
Tara resident Evelin Macaskill said she was devastated about the ‘senseless’ killings and was terrified something so sinister could happen in her town.
‘You don’t want to see anyone getting killed just for doing their job,’ she said.
The two Tara-based officers were tragically murdered by the Train family, who shot at them as soon as the pair stepped foot on their property.
When constables McCrow and Arnold fell to the ground, the Train family executed them in cold blood while standing over their bodies before stealing the officers’ weapons and radio.
During the chaotic scenes, Constable Brough was able to run into bushland, where she reportedly crawled her way to freedom but not before she spent 90 minutes hiding in the scrub.
The Train family tried to flush her out by shooting into the general area and also setting fires in a bid to smoke her out.
While Constable Brough was fearful for her life, she was able to send text messages to police and also to her family telling them she loved them.
Constable Rachel McCrow, 29, was one of the two young officers murdered in the shooting. Picture: Queensland Police Union
Constable Keely Brough escaped from an execution style-ambush that killed two of her colleagues
Meanwhile Constable Kirk, who had been shot in the leg, had managed to get back into his police car and drive away to call for help.
As he did so, the Train family continued to fire their guns at his moving vehicle, with multiple bullet holes visible in the front and back windshields and his driver side window completely smashed in.
Living nearby, Mr Dare decided to go and investigate after seeing black smoke rising from the property.
His kind act to help a neighbour out would be his last, as the Train family shot him in the back as he reportedly reached for his phone once he saw what was unfolding.
Brigalow resident Graham Stewart said Mr Dare was the type of person who would do anything for anyone and it was no surprise he’d gone to help after seeing smoke.
‘He’d help anybody, he was a pretty thin bloke with some missing teeth but you don’t judge people by their looks,’ Mr Stewart told NCA NewsWire.
‘Alan taught his family everything they know.
‘They were soulmates him and his missus.
‘They’re classed as blockies but there’s good ones and there’s bad ones, but Alan was one of the good ones.’
Neighbour Alan Dare was murdered when he went to inspect a fire set by the gunmen at Wieambilla
Constable Randall Kirk, pictured with wife Bree, had surgery to remove shrapnel and repair injuries sustained during the siege
Mr Stewart explained that people who lived out in rural areas like Wieambilla were tarnished with a bad reputation but that wasn’t always the case.
‘Just because they live out there, they tend to get tarred with the name ‘blockie’ and give them one description for everyone who is out there,’ he said.
‘There’s places out there that have padlocks on big gates with signs saying ‘do not enter’.
‘I know one place out there the bloke’s got holes dug and he gets in them and waits for people.
‘A lot of them out there with big gates on the front because it’s in the middle of nowhere.’
Gareth Train and his wife Stacey, who worked as a teacher at Tara Shire State College before quitting in 2021 over vaccine mandates, had reportedly bought the Wieambilla property in 2016.
They would go on to die there, alongside Gareth’s brother Nathaniel, after the deadly shootout ended when SERT officers arrived to assist.
A neighbour said Alan Dare, who died after going to investigate smoke rising from the Train family property, and his wife Kerry (right) were ‘soulmates’. Picture: Facebook
Mr Stewart said the horrific saga had left the community reeling at the thought their neighbours could be so callous and calculated to pull off a plan to murder police.
‘It’s buggered a lot of us up, it’s affected everybody,’ Mr Stewart said.
He’s been unable to eat anything since hearing the news and every day since has come down to Chinchilla Police Station to pay his respects.
Ms Macaskill said she’d always been warned about people with guns protecting their property, but now she’s even more vigilant.
‘When we moved out here we were told not to just go wandering onto people’s properties because they have guns,’ she said.
‘It’s a still bit old west out here, which is one of the things you love about here, but as a parent it’s quite scary too.
‘I’ve got kids, and the fact that this could just happen is really terrifying.’
Tara resident Rachel Buckman agreed, telling NCA NewsWire she’s now second guessing whether to trust her neighbours after hearing about what happened to Mr Dare.
‘That’s what makes me scared because I’m the type of person that if I hear my neighbours in trouble, I’d go help, but do I do that now?’ she said.
‘He just went to go help but looked what happened to him.’
Ms Macaskill said she’d hope the police would continue to serve her community.
Brigalow resident Graham Stewart has been attending the Chinchilla Police Station every day to pay his respects.
‘We’ve already got a lack of police as it is,’ she said.
‘I think people will take advantage, there’s people who don’t care and just run riot.
‘That is concerning because it will take a long time to get here from Dalby and to get here from Chinchilla.
‘It is concerning for that and I’m not sure what they’re going to do or where they’re able to get the police from.’
But Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers told NCA NewsWire officers at both Tara and Chinchilla would be fully supported during this difficult time.
‘We’re getting support from other areas across the state. We need the area to be staffed and we’re getting support from other parts of Queensland to do that,’ he said.
‘That’s really important because we’ve got to look after our police, some of whom are based here and need a break certainly for what I would suggest their psychological welfare.
‘We’ve got to look after them, so support is coming from other areas and that’s important.’
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