American Individual Linked to Aussie Shooters Secures Plea Bargain with Prosecutors
An American citizen associated with the perpetrators behind the fatal Wieambilla, Australia attack that took the lives of six individuals – including two Queensland police officers – has agreed to a less severe plea deal.
Arizona-based Donald Day Jr. will appear in court on October 21 after striking the bargain with US prosecutors.
The convicted felon, known online as “Geronimo's Bones”, is expected to plead guilty to a sole charge of unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition in a arrangement to be approved by the court this month.
Connections to Australian Shooters
Authorities established direct links between the defendant and the Train couple through online posts.
The Trains, along with Gareth’s brother Nathaniel, killed officers from Queensland Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow, and neighbor Alan Dare at a isolated location in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
The Trains were fatally shot in a gun battle with law enforcement, following a extended standoff at the regional property.
American officials said the accused corresponded via online platforms with the Trains during the period of the deadly ambush.
Day referred to Queensland police as “evil, corrupt, and wicked”, and said they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, telling the Trains he wanted to be at the scene in person.
Court documents outlined how the couple had uploaded an apocalyptic recording on the video platform after the shootings, stating police “attempted to kill us, and we retaliated”.
“Failing to stand against these evil forces makes one a coward … we’ll see you at home, Don. Love you,” the Trains said.
Firearms Cache and Court Case
Legal records reveal Day accumulated a collection of multiple powerful guns and numerous bullets of ammo at a country estate in Heber, Arizona, that was outfitted with a shooting range, weapons room and sniper hide.
“The guns and ammo were stored in the trailer I occupied with S.S., within a space we named the 'gun room',” Day said in the plea deal submitted in court.
He stated he regularly accessed both the weapons storage and the weapons, and also trained others on how to use the firearms correctly.
The bargain will result in dismissed counts that relate to the accused issuing threats to officials and federal agents.
According to court documents, the individual had been banned from possessing guns and arms because of his history of violent crimes.
The defendant, who has completed 24 months in detention, faces a highest sentence of up to 15 years imprisonment in prison or a fine of $250,000 (A$381,500), but the agreement specifies he will be judged under the low end of the legal sentencing standards.
