Police have offered a $500,000 reward for information over the unsolved shooting
Kelvin Tennant, 74, from Victoria, was enjoying a bike ride when he found himself face to face with a gunman who opened fire. Here he tells his story in his own words…
With the sun beating down and a gentle breeze whipping my face, I breathed a happy sigh.
It was February 2017, and my wife Marilyn, 70, was in Adelaide with her friends, so I’d taken our campervan to Myrtleford, Vic, for a few days away.
Now, I was on the bike trail to Beechworth. Cycling was my passion and I loved getting out on the road and exploring, especially if I was feeling stressed or down.
Sadly, Marilyn had been diagnosed with lung cancer and I was frantic with worry. Cycling on my motorised bicycle, I started to relax.
Half an hour in, I noticed a car backed up on the path. Then a man wearing grey clothing got out and stood between a tree and the side of the vehicle.
Funny place to park, I thought, as I slowed down to pass. But as I drew level with him, I looked to my right and saw he was holding a pistol.
Then I heard a bang and realised he’d shot me. Two more bangs quickly followed. I’d been shot two more times.
‘Why are you doing this to me?’ I called out. Just a few metres on, I fell to the ground.
Thinking quickly, I let out a deep groan and lay perfectly still, pretending I was dead.
The next thing I knew, a man was standing over me.
‘It’s okay, help is on its way,’ he told me. ‘My wife is waiting on the highway for the ambulance.’
Strangely, I couldn’t feel any pain, but there was blood everywhere.
After scans at Wangaratta Hospital, I was airlifted to a bigger hospital, the Alfred in Melbourne, for surgery.
There were wounds in my chest, left cheek and on the right side of my head.
With everything happening so quickly, the fact that I’d been shot didn’t really hit me.
My son Nick, then 46, and daughter Natalie, 42, were both waiting when I arrived, and my other son Matt, 45, who lives in Queensland, soon followed.
Surgeons operated to remove the bullet that was lodged in my chest.
The second bullet had gone through my left cheek and I needed reconstructive surgery to fix the shattered bone. And the third had fragmented into tiny pieces in my head.
Lying in bed recovering from the op, everything suddenly seemed very real. I was stunned.
Why had this man shot me?
When Marilyn arrived, she was shocked too.
‘Oh love, how could anyone do this?’ she said.
After another X-ray of my head where the bullet had fragmented, doctors came to talk to me.
‘We’ve never seen a scan like this in our hospital,’ they said. ‘You are extremely lucky to be alive.’
They pointed out how three of the fragments had narrowly missed areas that would have left me with a frozen face, slurred speech or no balance. I couldn’t believe how lucky I’d been.
The police came to get a full account of what had happened.
‘Do you have any enemies? Is there any reason why someone would shoot you?’ they asked.
‘No, I have no idea,’ I said.
They checked my police records, which confirmed I didn’t have a criminal history. It was baffling that this man had fired at me.
‘We’re launching a full investigation to find the perpetrator,’ a detective said.
After 10 days in hospital, and a week in rehab to get my strength up, I was finally able to go home.
‘Just keep away from men with guns,’ the doctor quipped as I left.
Initially, I was worried about cycling again, but after three months, I got back on my bike. It was like therapy.
Devastatingly, in November last year, my beautiful Marilyn lost her battle with cancer.
Despite the police’s efforts, it’s been over two years since I was shot and they haven’t been able to find the man responsible.
Victoria Police recently announced a $500,000 reward for information that could lead to a conviction. It would be nice to get some justice and also to stop that man from harming anyone else.
‘It’s someone who has no soul if they can do this to another person,’ my daughter Natalie said. ‘You deserve closure.’
I still have problems with my eyesight and hearing due to the injuries I suffered in the shooting. But I’ve not allowed what happened to make me bitter or angry.
There’s no way I’ll let that man dictate my emotions for the rest of my time on this earth. I feel lucky that I survived the attack and got to look after Marilyn during her final days.
And I’ve got three wonderful children and eight gorgeous grandkids to keep me busy. You haven’t got to look far to see people who are worse off than you are.
We’ve got to make the most of what we’ve got and remain positive.
Can you help?
About 12pm on Saturday, February 18, 2017, Kelvin was cycling on the Myrtleford-Everton rail trail in Everton, Vic, when an unknown man got out of a dark-coloured sedan and started shooting.
‘Kelvin was simply out enjoying riding his motorised bike along [the] rail trail when someone has tried to kill him,’ Armed Crime Squad Detective Inspector Dean Thomas said.
‘The Great Alpine Road area and the surrounding townships of Bright and Myrtleford attract a lot of tourists. It’s very possible that an interstate visitor on holidays in north-eastern Victoria that weekend has seen something but doesn’t realise what they know could be important.’
He urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit crimestoppers.com.au
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