American Individual Linked to Aussie Shooters Secures Plea Bargain with Prosecutors
An American citizen linked with the culprits behind the deadly Wieambilla, Australia shooting that claimed six lives – among them two Queensland police officers – has accepted a watered-down plea agreement.
Arizona-based Donald Day Jr. will appear in court on October 21 after finalizing the plea deal with US prosecutors.
The convicted felon, known online as “Geronimo’s Bones”, is anticipated to admit guilt to a sole charge of illegally owning firearms and ammunition in a deal to be approved by the court in the current month.
Connections to Aussie Gunmen
Investigators established clear connections between Day and Gareth and Stacey Train through online posts.
The Trains, along with Gareth’s brother Nathaniel, killed Queensland police officers Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow, and neighbour Alan Dare at a remote property in Wieambilla in 2022.
They were fatally shot in a final shootout with law enforcement, following a extended standoff at the rural site.
US prosecutors stated the accused corresponded via social media with the perpetrators during the period of the deadly ambush.
Day referred to Queensland officers as “evil, corrupt, and wicked”, and said they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, telling them he desired to be at Wieambilla physically.
Legal filings detailed how the couple had uploaded an end-times video on YouTube after the incident, saying police “came to kill us and we killed them”.
“If you don’t defend yourself against these devils and demons, you’re a coward … We will meet you at home, Don. With love,” the Trains expressed.
Weapons Stockpile and Legal Proceedings
Court documents show Day stockpiled a cache of multiple powerful guns and numerous bullets of ammunition at a country estate in Heber, AZ, that was outfitted with a gun range, gun room and sniper’s nest.
“The firearms and ammunition were kept in the mobile home I shared with S.S., in a room we called the ‘gun room’,” he said in the agreement submitted in the legal system.
Day said he regularly accessed both the gun room and the firearms, and also trained others on how to operate the firearms correctly.
The bargain will lead to dismissed counts that pertain to the alleged making of threats to public figures and FBI agents.
Based on court documents, Day had been banned from owning guns and arms because of his violent criminal history.
Day, who has served 24 months in detention, could receive a maximum penalty of up to 15 years imprisonment in jail or a fine of US$250,000 (A$381,500), but the plea deal stipulates he will be sentenced under the minimum range of the sentencing guidelines.