A ‘Nazi flag waving’ gunman who shot dead his work colleague called his mum and begged for forgiveness before turning the firearm on himself.
Lachlan Bowles, 25, gunned down father-of-one Terry Czernowski, 44, at Moylan Grain Silos – where the pair worked – in Kellerberrin, 200km east of Perth at 8.40am on Thursday.
Bowles, a former volunteer ambulance officer, evaded police for more than eight hours before coming to a standoff in a grain field.
The 25-year-old made a call to his mother during the final negotiations with police.
He is understood to have told his loved one that he was sorry, hoped to be forgiven and that he was racked with guilt, The West Australian reported.
Bowles, a volunteer paramedic, requested to talk to his mother during negotiations with police, telling her he was sorry, hoped to be forgiven and was racked with guilt
Father-of-one Terry Czernowski (pictured) worked with Bowles at Moylan Grain Silos, and police said the incident was related to a matter ‘between the two parties’
Heavily armed police tried to convince Bowles to lay down his firearm before the gunman turned the weapon on himself.
Bowles had been wearing a camouflage uniform and Swastika and waving a Nazi flag.
Detectives are still working to determine exactly what led him to snap and kill Mr Czernowski.
The two had been colleagues for years, and police confirmed Bowles’ grievance with him was related to a matter ‘between the two parties’.
Even though the standoff with police is long over, the 900-strong town at the centre of the rampage is still trying to put the pieces together.
A local business owner who claims to have known both men well told The West that nobody has expected Bowles to go on the rampage that ended his life.
‘If you had told me two days ago that this was going to happen, I’d say, ‘You’re dreaming, mate”,’ Woodstock Electrical Services owner Peter Mitchell said.
‘(Bowles) was that sort of kid. You’d never hear him say a bad word about anyone… But obviously underneath, something has gone wrong, and he’s just shaded it.’
Bowles, who is not believed to have had a criminal history, had two registered firearms and was carrying a high-powered rifle and a handgun with him during his rampage.
Police swarmed the town of 900 after reports came in of the active shooting, eventually locating Bowles and following him to a grain field
After becoming distraught on the phone with his mother Bowles turned his rifle on himself and pulled the trigger, ending the ordeal which is now subject to a coronial inquiry
A local told Daily Mail Australia that Bowles went to his workplace at Moylan Grain Silos in Kellerberrin and ‘shot someone about 25 times’.
‘My mates work down the street and heard a bunch of gun shots and then the town was crawling with police,’ he said.
Police locked down the area and helicopters were ordered not to fly overhead for fears they could get shot down – and police said at least one car was shot at as Bowles fled.
An emergency message was sent to locals warning them to stay indoors before a second text went out letting them know the issue had been resolved later in the day.
‘Residents in the area are advised to remain alert. It has been confirmed that one man is now deceased and Homicide Squad are investigating,’ police said in a second text.
Bowles’ death is expected to be treated as a death in police presence, and if this is the case the matter is subject to a coronial inquiry.
Police have said that the incident will be investigated by their internal affairs unit and homicide squad, as per standard procedures.
Lachlan Bowles, 25, (pictured) called his mum in tears during a standoff with police after he’d shot his co-worker dead at about 8.40am on Thursday in Kellerberrin, 200km east of Perth
The residents of Kellerberrin were told by police to stay indoors after gunshots were fired at a grain silo in the area