Kenneth John Giles: Search for accused Mullewa gunman enters sixth day, with police aiming for safe resolution

The hunt for accused Mullewa gunman Kenneth John Giles entered its sixth day on Monday, a few days after police seized a major cache of weapons to which the 58-year-old could have had access. Police say they continue to actively search for Mr Giles and are following several lines of inquiry. The “skilled bushman” at the centre of an outback manhunt, after he allegedly shot his partner in the hand, was staying at a property that had at least 16 firearms on the premises. Police made the bombshell revelation on Friday, as they confirmed Mr Giles did not hold a gun licence. There have been no confirmed sightings of the 58-year-old since he was accused of fleeing from a property north of Mullewa, about 450km from Perth and 100km from Geraldton, after a woman in her 40s was shot in the hand about 5.30pm on Wednesday last week. All the information police have to go on is Mr Giles apparently headed east in a white Nissan Patrol, registration 1BIY336. Where he is hiding remains a mystery. But police believe — and warn — that he is likely to still be armed. “Being a skilled bushman of the area, we expect he’s probably been quite clever and lying quite low,” Mid West-Gascoyne Police Supt Neil Vanderplank said on Friday. As the search entered its sixth day on Monday, the operation — which includes the police air wing and tactical response group — continued to scour difficult and remote terrain, littered with many tracks, abandoned shacks and mine shafts. “Significant police resources are searching for Mr Giles, and we are committed to finding him and bringing this to a safe resolution,” a spokesperson for WA Police said on Monday. Supt Vanderplank confirmed Mr Giles was “not a licensed firearms holder” and said how he had access to at least one firearm was part of the investigation. But Mr Giles was “staying” at a property which had no shortage of guns, with police seizing a significant haul of weapons to which the suspected shooter could have had access. “He doesn’t own any guns,” Supt Vanderplank said. “We’ve seized a number of firearms from the property . . . we’ve seized 16 so far.” Supt Vanderplank said police did not yet know exactly what firearm had been used in the incident, but had been advised it was a long-range rifle. “Farmers have access to lots of firearms so that wouldn’t be uncommon,” he said. “The specific number, whose they are and the rationale for having them will form part of the follow-up investigation.” Supt Vanderplank said the seized firearms belonged to other occupants of the property, some of whom were not there at the time of the alleged shooting. It has been reported the shooting occurred at a family gathering Mr Giles was not invited to. Supt Vanderplank said that claim was part of the police investigation. Two small children, the alleged victim Tanya Moran, another man, and an older woman were there at the time, Supt Vanderplank confirmed. Police have described Mr Giles — a long-time and well-known Mullewa resident who worked as a farmhand — as a skilled bushman. They have expanded their search area but believe “with a fairly high degree of certainty” he is still within the Mid West and Gascoyne district. That area covers a massive 600,000sqkm — about a quarter of WA’s land mass. Police are treating the shooting as a family and domestic violence-related incident, but remain tight-lipped about the nature of the relationship between Mr Giles and Ms Moran, though it is understood they are partners. Ms Moran was taken to Geraldton Health Campus with non-life-threatening injuries and later flown to Royal Perth Hospital, where she is to have hand surgery. Supt Vanderplank said Ms Moran was speaking with detectives in Perth but was “very, very sore” and going through “a number of surgeries”. He said the number of calls and tips to police had reached the hundreds. “We’re throwing every available resource at it, we’ll go as long as we have to,” Supt Vanderplank said. “We will continue to search for Mr Giles until this is resolved.” Supt Vanderplank said police had no plans to scale back the search, and the extra resources from Perth were staying in the area for the foreseeable future. He said police were not aware of anyone helping Mr Giles evade capture, but issued another plea to the 58-year-old to hand himself in so “we can end this matter safe as we can”. “There are a number of tracks around the place that can avoid main roads and arterial roads,” he said. “All the information we’ve got is that he’s a fairly skilled bushman who can hunt and survive off the land. When asked if police were planning to enlist the help of any expert trackers, Supt Vanderplank said: “If we had a starting point we would probably explore that avenue but we don’t actually have a physical starting location as to where he’s going.” Supt Vanderplank confirmed officers from Mullewa were the first on the scene. They extricated the injured woman, ensured the safety of others, and did not wait for tactical assistance, meaning Mr Giles did not get that much of a head start. On Friday, the region’s top cop said police were closer to finding Mr Giles than they were the day before. Family friend Bianca Byron told 7NEWS on Friday she “couldn’t believe it had happened, (it’s) just very shocking”, but had words of compassion for Mr Giles. “I honestly couldn’t believe it, it was such a shock, it really was. It seemed so out of character, it really did,” she said. “I just want him to come home, they think he’s a good man, they think they’re good people as well, they just want the best for everyone. They don’t want anything bad to happen, they’re just devastated.” Mullewa residents have spoken of knowing Mr Giles’ expertise in the outback, with one saying he “could be anywhere”. “He ain’t going to want to be caught and go to jail for the rest of his life,” one person said. “He knows the bush . . . he’s like a dingo.” Another resident described Mr Giles as a “hard-working bushy”, who had “always done rural work”. Mr Giles is described as about 173cm tall with a medium build, brown hair and brown eyes. “Anyone in the vicinity of Mullewa is advised to be aware of their surroundings and avoid travelling through the area,” Supt Vanderplank said. The public are advised not to approach Mr Giles but instead to call police immediately on triple-0. “We urge anyone with any information in relation to his whereabouts to contact police immediately on 131 444 or via Crime Stoppers, either online at www.crimestopperswa.com.au or by calling 1800 333 000. Reports can be made anonymously,” WA Police said.