Victoria Police has this afternoon named the two officers who were tragically killed in the line of duty in Porepunkah yesterday – they are 59-year-old Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and 35-year-old Senior Constable Vadim De Waart.
Det Leading Snr Const Thompson joined Victoria Police in September 1987 and, after completing his training, spent seven years in general duties at Collingwood Police Station. For the next decade, he worked as a detective at the Major Fraud Squad and the State Crime Squad, before taking up his most recent post at Wangaratta CIU in July 2007.
In a statement, Victoria Police said the soon-to-retire officer was an adventurer and enjoyed all things outdoors. He loved getting out in nature, and his friends and colleagues regularly joined him on these trips.
“Neal had spent the past six years alongside his partner, Lisa, the love of his life. Since the pair met, Neal had found new purpose and was planning in earnest for his imminent retirement. Together with Lisa, Neal had built a new home and had a long list of tasks planned after he knocked off work for the last time,” Victoria Police said.
Senior Constable Vadim De Waart (pictured, below) started his policing career at the Victoria Police Academy in December 2018. Following his training, he joined St Kilda Police Station where he worked for three years, before joining PORT as a senior constable in April 2023. At the time of his passing, Snr Const De Waart was on temporary assignment in Wangaratta.
“An eternal optimist and avid traveller, Vadim was fluent in French, Spanish, Flemish and English. He had also completed scuba dives all around the world and motorcycling trips more locally with his friends and colleagues,” Victoria Police said.
“He was a keen gin collector and always picked up a local bottle on his overseas adventures for his large collection at home. While travelling was his passion, Vadim was extremely proud to have purchased his first home in Melbourne in recent years.”
He is survived by his beloved parents, Carolina and Alain, who live in his native Belgium, and his younger brother Sacha who lives in Switzerland. Closer to home in Melbourne, he leaves behind his aunty Jacqueline, uncle Shane, uncle Peter, aunty Maria and his cousins Christopher, Jeremy, Laura and Tessa.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said the devastating loss of the two officers had struck at the heart of Victoria Police, the broader policing family and the community of Porepunkah.
“In the coming days, weeks and months, we will all grieve this loss and deeply miss our colleagues and friends who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty,” he said.
“It is not lost on me that our members take a risk every time they go to work to protect the Victorian community. While we all live with the knowledge that the worst could happen on a shift, we don’t expect it to.
“In these difficult times it is so important that our people stand together and support each other, and I have full confidence that we will all do this with dignity and respect.”
