American Man Linked to Aussie Shooters Strikes Plea Bargain with Prosecutors
A US man associated with the perpetrators behind the fatal Wieambilla, Australia shooting that claimed the lives of six individuals – among them 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 finalizing the bargain with American authorities.
The convicted felon, referred to online as “Geronimo’s Bones”, is expected to plead guilty to a sole charge of unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition in a deal to be sanctioned by the judiciary this month.
Links to Australian Shooters
Authorities confirmed clear connections between Day and Gareth and Stacey Train through online posts.
This couple, along with Nathaniel Train, killed officers from Queensland Arnold and McCrow, and neighbor Alan Dare at a remote property in Wieambilla, Queensland in 2022.
They were killed in a gun battle with law enforcement, following a extended standoff at the rural site.
US prosecutors said the accused corresponded via social media with the Trains around the time of the fatal attack.
He referred to Queensland officers as “malignant, malformed and malevolent”, and said they should be shown “no mercy whatsoever”, telling the Trains he wanted to be at Wieambilla in person.
Legal filings detailed how Gareth and Stacey Train had uploaded an end-times recording on the video platform after the shootings, stating 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 said.
Weapons Stockpile and Court Case
Court documents show the defendant stockpiled a collection of nine high-powered firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammo at a country estate in Heber, Arizona, that was outfitted with a shooting range, gun room and sniper’s nest.
“The guns and ammo were stored in the trailer I occupied with S.S., within a space we named the 'gun room',” he admitted in the agreement submitted in the legal system.
He said he frequently used both the gun room and the firearms, and also trained others on how to use the firearms correctly.
The bargain will lead to dismissed counts that pertain to the alleged issuing threats to public figures and FBI agents.
Based on court documents, Day had been banned from possessing guns and arms because of his history of violent crimes.
Day, who has served 24 months in custody, faces a maximum penalty of up to 15 years imprisonment in jail or a penalty of $250,000 (A$381,500), but the agreement stipulates he will be judged under the minimum range of the legal sentencing standards.
