Documents violence · suicide — written to inform, not to shock.
The Wieambilla shootings took place on 12 December 2022 at a rural property in Wieambilla, Queensland, when police constables Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow and neighbor Alan Dare were fatally shot. The property's three residents, brothers Gareth and Nathaniel Train and Gareth's wife, Stacey Train, were then shot and killed by police after an hours-long standoff. Queensland Police initially described the shootings as a Christian fundamentalist terror attack, but a coronial inquest later found the attack did not meet the statutory definition of a terrorist act, attributing the Trains' actions to a shared psychosis rooted in religious belief and persecutory delusion.
New South Wales Police had asked Queensland Police to carry out a welfare check at the property, about 270 kilometres northwest of Brisbane, as part of a missing-person inquiry: Nathaniel Train, a former school principal, had reportedly not contacted family since 9 October 2022. Nathaniel's estranged second wife had lodged the missing-person report on 4 December 2022 and had since received threatening messages from Gareth, an online conspiracy theorist. Both brothers, former teachers who had resigned in 2020 and 2021, disliked police; Nathaniel had previously been married to Stacey.
On the afternoon of 12 December 2022, Constables Arnold and McCrow, with Constables Randall Kirk and Keely Brough, arrived to conduct the welfare check. At 4:37 p.m., without warning, the residents opened fire on the officers with rifles. Arnold was fatally shot approaching the property; McCrow was wounded, returned fire, and was then fatally shot at close range. Kirk, shot in the hip, escaped by vehicle; Brough hid in bushland while on a phone call with police. At about 5:30 p.m., neighbor Alan Dare was fatally shot after going to investigate fires the residents had set; a second neighbor was unharmed.
Local officers extracted Arnold's and McCrow's bodies and rescued Brough while under fire. Special Emergency Response Team officers arrived that evening in armored vehicles; the residents fired on the vehicle and a police helicopter for hours. Gareth and Stacey Train also recorded and posted an online video in which Gareth said 'they came to kill us and we killed them.' At 10:29 p.m. tactical officers breached the property, and by 10:39 p.m. Gareth, Stacey and Nathaniel Train had been fatally shot by police.
Arnold was 26 and McCrow 29; Dare was 58. Kirk and Brough, both 28, were hospitalized and survived. Arnold and McCrow were posthumously awarded the National Police Service Medal, National Medal, Queensland Police Service Medal and Queensland Police Valour Medal at a memorial service on 21 December 2022; Dare received a posthumous Queensland Police Bravery Medal in March 2023. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other leaders paid public tribute, and landmarks including Brisbane's Story Bridge and the Sydney Opera House were lit in the victims' honor.
In February 2023, Queensland Police Deputy Commissioner Tracy Linford said an assessment concluded the Trains had 'executed a religiously motivated terrorist attack' rooted in Christian fundamentalist belief. A coronial inquest ran from July to August 2024; coroner Terry Ryan's report, delivered 21 November 2025, reached a different conclusion, finding the shootings did not meet the legal definition of terrorism and attributing them to a shared delusional disorder in which the Trains viewed police as 'demons' and were 'intent on dying.' Ryan made ten recommendations, including more threat-assessment funding and mental-health screening for firearms licences. In December 2023, U.S. citizen Donald Day Jr. was arrested in Arizona and later charged in connection with allegedly sending the Trains ideological messages before the attack; further firearms and threat-related charges followed in January 2024.
Key facts
- Victims
- Rachel McCrow, Matthew Arnold, Alan Dare
- Date
- 2022
- Location
- Wieambilla, Queensland, Australia
- Case status
- solved
Case timeline
2020
Nathaniel Train resigned from his position as a school principal and teacher.
2021
Gareth Train resigned from his teaching position.
2021-12
A weapons dumping and a state border breach linked to Gareth and Nathaniel Train prompted a police warrant that was later followed up during the welfare check.
2022-10-09
Nathaniel Train's family reported he had last made contact around this date, before he was reported missing.
2022-12-04
Nathaniel Train's estranged second wife lodged a missing person report.
2022-12-12
Four Queensland Police constables arrived at the Wieambilla property at about 4:35 p.m. to carry out a welfare check.
2022-12-12
At 4:37 p.m., the property's residents opened fire without warning, fatally wounding Constable Matthew Arnold.
2022-12-12
Constable Rachel McCrow was fatally shot at close range at 4:46 p.m. after being wounded.
2022-12-12
Neighbor Alan Dare was fatally shot at about 5:30 p.m. after going to investigate fires set on the property.
2022-12-12
Special Emergency Response Team officers breached the property at 10:29 p.m.; by 10:39 p.m. police had fatally shot Gareth Train, Stacey Train and Nathaniel Train.
2022-12-18
Police charged two men with unlawful trespass and stealing by looting on the Trains' property.
2022-12-21
Constables Arnold and McCrow were posthumously honored with police medals at a memorial service in Brisbane.
2022-12-23
Alan Dare's funeral was held.
2023-02
Queensland Police Deputy Commissioner Tracy Linford said an assessment concluded the shootings were a religiously motivated terrorist attack.
2023-03
Alan Dare was posthumously awarded the Queensland Police Bravery Medal.
2023-12
U.S. citizen Donald Day Jr. was arrested in Arizona in connection with the shootings.
2023-12
State and territory leaders and the Prime Minister pledged to implement a National Firearms Register at a National Cabinet meeting, citing the Wieambilla shootings.
2024-01
American prosecutors added charges against Donald Day Jr. for illegal firearm possession and threatening FBI agents.
2024-07
A coronial inquest into the shootings began before Queensland state coroner Terry Ryan.
2024-08
The coronial inquest concluded after 17 days of hearings.
2025-11-21
Coroner Terry Ryan delivered his report, finding the shootings did not meet the legal definition of terrorism and attributing them to a shared delusional disorder.
2026-04
Queensland Police hosted an award ceremony in Dalby recognizing responding officers, including Constable Brough and Senior Constable Kirk.
Best coverage
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People
Rachel McCrow
VICTIMQueensland Police constable, aged 29, wounded and then fatally shot at close range on 12 December 2022; had been sworn in as an officer in June 2021.
citation on file
Donald Day Jr.
CHARGEDU.S. citizen arrested in Arizona in December 2023 and charged in connection with allegedly sending the Trains ideological messages before the attack; further charged in January 2024 with illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and threatening FBI agents.
citation on file
Matthew Arnold
VICTIMQueensland Police constable, aged 26, fatally shot at the Wieambilla property on 12 December 2022; had been sworn in as an officer in March 2020.
citation on file
Tracy Linford
LAW ENFORCEMENTQueensland Police Deputy Commissioner who in February 2023 publicly detailed the police assessment that the attack was a religiously motivated terrorist act; a 2025 coronial inquest concluded the attack did not meet the legal definition of terrorism.
citation on file
Keely Brough
LAW ENFORCEMENTQueensland Police constable, aged 28, survived by hiding in bushland and remaining on a phone call with emergency services on 12 December 2022; later awarded the Queensland Police Valour Medal.
citation on file
Randall Kirk
LAW ENFORCEMENTQueensland Police constable, aged 28, shot in the hip but escaped the property on 12 December 2022; later promoted to senior constable and awarded the Queensland Police Blue Heart Medal.
citation on file
Alan Dare
VICTIMCivilian neighbor, aged 58, fatally shot on 12 December 2022 after going to the property to investigate fires that had been set.
citation on file
Places
Common questions
- What happened to the victim?
- On 12 December 2022, the three residents of a rural property in Wieambilla, Queensland, fatally shot two police constables and a neighbor before being shot dead by police after an hours-long standoff that a 2025 coronial inquest later attributed to shared delusion rather than terrorism.
- Where did the shootings happen?
- Wieambilla, Queensland, Australia.
- What is the current status of the case?
- Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.
Sources
- Wieambilla shootingswikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
- Contemporaneous coverage — ABC News (Australia)news · ABC News (Australia) · 2026-07-07
- Contemporaneous coverage — The Guardiannews · The Guardian · 2026-07-07
Last verified JUL 2026
