Wieambilla shooting: Madelyn Train defends relationship between parents and uncle

The daughter of paranoid conspiracy theorists Nathaniel and Stacey Train has revealed what she believes led to their deadly ambush of a group of young cops. 

Madelyn Train, in her 20s, is the pair’s biological child but they divorced when she was three and she considers Nathaniel’s brother Gareth – who then married Stacey – as her father. 

In defending the strange relationship between her parents and uncle, Maddy said that she ‘grew up in a really healthy, happy family environment (and) the only reason it was unusual is literally people’s interpretation of it.’

Nathaniel, Gareth and Stacey killed police constables Rachel McCrow, 29, and Matthew Arnold, 26, when they opened fire as they arrived at their Wieambilla property on a routine welfare check for a missing persons case in December.

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Madelyn Train (pictured) the devastated daughter and step-daughter of Wieambilla cop ambush perpetrators Nathaniel, Gareth and Stacey Train 

Maddy said her mother ‘hated guns’ (pictured as a child with her younger brother and Stacey)

Two other constables barely managed to escape the barrage of gunshots at the rural property, while neighbour Alan Dare, 58, was shot in the back as he ventured closer to investigate the gunshots and a grass fire.

A lengthy siege then ensued as 16 officers from the Specialist Emergency Response Team were scrambled to the location and only concluded when the trio were killed by police.

A distraught Maddy denied claims that the three were meth users and said she does not believe alcohol or drugs were a factor. 

‘I’d say they were influenced by fear, by whatever was happening and them not understanding,’ she told 9News in an interview airing on Sunday night.

‘Gary would often think he was in a military scenario becvause he wanted to join the military he’d read lots of military books,’ she said.

During the siege Gareth texted Maddy that ‘Vanessa sent people to kill us’. 

Vanessa is Nathaniel’s estranged second wife that he married after Stacey who had also made the missing person report about him. 

Maddy claimed the trio were the ‘gentlest’ people she knew.

‘I mourn six people. I mourn my family, I mourn the police officers, and I mourn the neighbour.’

‘I have developed acute traumatic stress disorder from it. Because grieving three of your family members is hard enough but then finding out what they did and then seeing everyone’s reaction to what they did.’

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The family before Nathaniel and Stacey got a divorce and she went on to marry his brother 

‘They (Nathaniel and Gareth) were both shot dead. And then mum was trying to get out the back.’

‘They said she was armed but mum didn’t like guns so I don’t know what she was armed with, but the police said it was a gun and I trust the police.’

She said Gareth has always believed in conspiracy theories but that it went up a notch during the pandemic.  

‘It’s like he was doing this weird project on Covid and the end of the world.’

She said her mother grew more isolated when she lost her job at Tara State College for refusing to get a Covid vaccine.

And that Nathaniel suffered heart attack which affected his short term memory and caused him to get increasingly erratic. 

Maddy said she would also not consider changing her name despite being linked to the tragedy.

‘My name is not a secret, I have never done anything wrong,’ she said.