Two men have been arrested in northeast Victoria as detectives continue probing the movements of fugitive Dezi Freeman following the fatal shooting of two police officers in Porepunkah last year.

“Detectives from Taskforce Summit arrested two people this morning as part of their ongoing investigation into the movements of Desmond Freeman following the fatal shooting of two police officers in Porepunkah last August,” a police statement on Tuesday said.

“A 48-year-old man and a 35-year-old man were arrested on 26 May at two separate locations in northeast Victoria.

“The pair will now be interviewed by police. The investigation remains ongoing and as such, we are not in a position to provide further details at this immediate time.”

Authorities have not disclosed the men’s alleged connection to Freeman, nor whether charges are expected to follow. It also remains unclear where exactly the arrests took place or where the pair were taken into custody.

The arrests come as two coronial inquiries continue examining the deaths of Freeman and officers Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waard-Hottart, with the hearings this week revealing chilling details of the deadly Porepunkah shooting for the first time.

The court heard Freeman allegedly opened fire as police attempted to execute an arrest warrant tied to child sexual abuse allegations and the production of child abuse material. Counsel assisting the coroner, Lindsay Spence, said Freeman shot DLSC Thompson in the head before turning his weapon on Senior Constable de Waard-Hottart and firing at other officers surrounding his makeshift bus home.

The hearing was told Freeman then swore at Senior Constable de Waard-Hottart, seized his service firearm and returned to shoot a wounded DLSC Thompson a second time.

Separate proceedings into Freeman’s death heard the fugitive recorded 23 minutes of audio during a tense three-hour siege at a remote Thologolong property, about 150km north of Porepunkah, where he had evaded capture after more than seven months on the run.

The court was told Freeman taunted negotiators and officers, including inviting them to share a beer, before emerging from a shipping container wrapped in a blanket and carrying Senior Constable de Waard-Hottart’s firearm. Multiple Special Operations Group officers then opened fire, killing Freeman at the scene.