Tasmanian gunman kills man and injures woman on William Street in front of 10-year-old

A gunman killed a man and injured a woman in front of a 10-year-old boy before the shooter took his own life, police say.

Police were called to a house on William Street in Devonport, northwest Tasmania, following reports of shots being fired just before 1am on Saturday.

Tasmania Police Detective Inspector Kim Steven said a woman, who suffered a gunshot wound to her abdomen, went to a neighbour’s house to raise the alarm. 

Detective inspector Kim Stevens said police heard a gunshot as they arrived and believed it was the shooter taking his own life.

They found two men aged in their 30s dead inside the house as well as two children aged one and 10 who were taken to Burnie hospital.

‘They were not physically injured, but the 10-year-old boy witnessed a fair portion of what occurred’, Det Insp Steven said.

‘They are being seen to by a psychologist and are in care of their grandmother at the moment,’ he said.

‘There are immediate concerns for the welfare of the children and the surviving lady who is at the hospital.’

Detectives are investigating how the man came to possess the gun used in the shooting, which has been recovered by police. 

‘This is a person who’s taken another man’s life, attempted to take a female’s life and then taken his own life,’ detective inspector Stevens said.

‘We are not looking for any further person involved in the crime at this stage, so there is no threat to the community.’

Detectives are also looking into the gunman’s movements before arriving at the house.

The woman, aged in her 30s, has been taken to Launceston General Hospital in a serious but stable condition and will undergo surgery to have pellets removed.

Detective inspector Stevens said body-worn camera footage taken by police at the scene was ‘pretty confronting’ and all emergency services who attended are being given ongoing welfare support.

Detective inspector Kim Stevens said police heard a gunshot as they arrived and believed it was the shooter taking his own life

‘We are trained for this, but it is only a very small amount of police who will have attended a scene like that, with basically an active person, or shots being fired,’ he said.

Police said the shooter knew the victims, but their relationship with each other would be a matter for the coroner.

‘They are known to each other, various relationships between the three people,’ Det Insp Steven said.

‘That would be a matter for the coroner, to work out … the relationships. We are still working through all that at the moment.’

A large police presence will remain in the area throughout Saturday as the crime scene is processed with people asked to avoid William Street.

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