Police say man who allegedly shot partner in domestic violence incident was ‘skilled bushman’ who lived off land

West Australian police say they believe a man allegedly currently on the run from officers after shooting his partner in the hand is “a very skilled bushman” who is likely still in the state’s Mid-West region.

Significant police resources, including tactical response group officers, have been deployed to find Kenneth Giles, 58, who is accused of shooting a woman in the hand with what police believe to be a long-range rifle at a house in Mullewa on Wednesday afternoon.

The pair were at a rural property off Urawa Road, about 24 kilometres north of Mullewa, when the incident occurred.

Several other people, including a child, were at the property at the time, and Giles left the premises shortly after the shooting.

Mid-West officer Neil Vanderplank on Friday said officers were combing through the region in the search for Giles.

“[We are once again pleading with] Kenneth Giles to make himself known to police ... so we can end this matter as safely as we can for the community and for himself,” he said.

“[The] information we’ve got is Giles is a really skilled bushman who can hunt and [live] off the land.

“We’re throwing every available resource at it.”

Vanderplank confirmed police were treating the investigation as a domestic violence incident and officers had since seized a number of firearms from the property.

However, Giles is not a registered firearm owner.

“We treat every firearm incident as very, very seriously,” Vanderplank said.

“Anytime … members of the public are in danger, we will respond appropriately with appropriate levels of force.“

He said Giles’ partner remained in Royal Perth Hospital and had undergone a number of surgeries to her injured hand.

Vanderplank said while police had received no confirmed sightings of Giles since he was last seen on Wednesday, they had received some information about his location.

“[We believe] he’s still in the Mid-West/Gascoyne area,” he said.

Police believe Giles is armed and travelling in a White Nissan Patrol ute, license plate 1BIY336.

Since the incident, WA Police have continued to deploy significant resources to the small town, including more than a dozen members of the Tactical Response Group.

Locals described Giles as “a normal person” while the community is in shock at the incident. 9News Perth reports residents were not fearful of Giles and were surprised to hear he was allegedly involved in the shooting.

Vanderplank advised anyone who sees Giles to call triple zero and not approach him.

People who were present at the residence during the shooting are also being interviewed.