A sinister silence is lingering along the banks of the Murray River.
It's a place known for its beauty, with green paddocks, quiet roads and small country towns.
But everything changed early on Monday morning when a neighbouring resident reported hearing a single gunshot, raising the question: who turned in Dezi Freeman?
For seven months, police have been searching for the 56-year-old.
Freeman hadn't been officially sighted since shooting dead Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart as they and other officers raided his home in the small town of Porepunkah in late August.
That was until police moved swiftly onto a seemingly vacant property just after 5.30am in Thologolong, about 150km from Freeman's last known location.
In darkness, officers negotiated with the man, believed to be Freeman, for three hours.
But the rural outpost fell silent after multiple bullets were fired, with Freeman shot dead.
It's not known if anyone assisted in harbouring the fugitive.
Chief Commissioner Mike Bush would not be drawn on whether the discovery came from a tip-off or if the $1 million reward would be paid out.
Discussion of the reward was floating around in the nearby town of Walwa, just hours after news of Freeman's death began circulating.
"It's been pretty crazy today," Walwa General Store’s Samir Ramzan told AAP.
"We had a lot of locals find out, then reporters, a lot of phone calls, and a bikie group came through because the road was closed.
"Some people are teasing each other - 'who dobbed him in, who got the million?'"
Despite the chatter, many residents are unsettled knowing a self-described sovereign citizen had been living nearby.
"Assuming it is (Dezi), I am a little uncomfortable that Dezi Freeman has been found in the Upper Murray," Walwa resident Janice Newnham told AAP.
"I thought it likely that he had managed to escape the Mt Buffalo area, but I expected he would be beyond the state boundaries by now.
"I am more concerned that his enablers might be within our community, since he was on private property."
Aerial footage of the property shows multiple shipping containers, tarps, and various vehicles scattered across the site, which is a far distance from the road.
It's not known if anyone assisted Freeman at the property, although Mr Bush said it would have been "very difficult" for him to get to where he was without help.
Despite many questions remaining unanswered, authorities were pleased the seven-month manhunt, one of the largest in the country's history, had been brought to a close.
"This incident has hung like a dark, dark shadow over these communities," Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said.
"That shadow has been lifted somewhat."
