Two police officers who were stabbed while responding to a “high risk incident” have been placed in induced comas and their attacker has been shot dead.
The incident unfolded at a house at Crystal Brook – 200km north of Adelaide – in South Australia’s mid north just after 11am on Wednesday.
Brevet Sergeant Ian Todd, from Port Germein, is fighting for his life at the Royal Adelaide Hospital after being stabbed in the neck, arm and hands.
Brevet Sergeant Jordan Allely, the officer in charge of Crystal Brook, suffered stab wounds to his right leg and arm and was taken to Port Pirie Hospital in a serious but stable condition.
Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said both officers had been placed in induced comas.
Footage has now emerged from The Advertiser showing the attacker, identified as 53-year-old Sean Scott Francis Ferry, arguing with people about his dog outside a supermarket.
“You’re the one causing me trouble, (unintelligible) try and do your job,” Ferry can be heard saying in the footage, before adding, “Leave me alone.”
“I’m sick of a***holes like you whinging about my dog and causing me trouble,” he says.
“Don’t tell me what I should do with my life.”
Police arrived at his property the next morning for a welfare check.
A resident of Crystal Brook, Tom Sawyer, told The Advertiser he’d witnessed the incident outside the supermarket, and had often seen Ferris in the area with a husky.
“I was across the road and just heard the man aggressively shouting at someone out the front of the shop,” Mr Sawyer said.
“It was about the dog, someone was confronting him about it and he was just yelling that there was nothing he could do about it.”
Later, “in passing”, he heard Ferris had threatened someone with a knife. However Mr Sawyer added that he was “a nice guy whenever I talked to him”.
Commissioner Stevens said both injured police officers were wearing body cameras and stab-resistant vests at the time of the attack.
He would not go into detail about what had unfolded, saying a coronial inquiry would take place.
“The sad reality is that police officers are injured quite frequently while on duty and we’re very hopeful that both of these police officers come through the injuries they have received.”
Comm Stevens said a neighbour had provided aid to one of the injured officers during the incident.
“We’re very grateful for that person stepping forward and providing critical support,” Comm Stevens said.
Officers from the Forensic Response Section were seen outside the house in white hazmat suits analysing the crime scene.
Major Crime Detectives and the officers from the Internal Investigation Section were also attending the scene, with police cars lining the streets.
It is understood the officers were initially attending the house in relation to complaints about the occupant’s dog, a husky, that had been ongoing.
Police confirmed that the officers had attended the home to conduct inquiries in relation to “another matter” before the incident unfolded.
Chloe, who works at the local newsagent and said she served the alleged offender about 30 minutes before the incident took place.
“We were just talking about the rain and how it takes so long to dry his dog,“ she told FIVEaa radio.
“I guess it was just like a normal morning and then we heard helicopters.
“Not that long after we found out there was a siege down the street where he lived.”
She said he seemed “normal” when she spoke to him earlier but he has come into the shop before “a bit on edge”.
Police Association president Mark Carroll has called it a “tragic incident” that has left one officer in a serious condition.
“This is a horrifying reminder of the levels of extreme violence frontline police officers face in the line of duty,‘’ he told the Advertiser.
“Details about this tragic incident are scarce at the moment, but we do know that both officers are badly hurt, and one is in a serious condition in hospital.
“The Police Association is currently providing support to both the impacted officers and their families.”
Premier Peter Malinauskas said his thoughts were with the two injured officers and their families.
“I have just spoken to Police Commissioner Grant Stevens in relation to the high-risk incident at Crystal Brook,” he tweeted just before 2pm.
“Our police put their lives on the line everyday to keeping us safe, for that we are forever grateful.”
– with NCA NewsWire