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Police plea on missing Stoccos

Elusive armed fugitives Gino and Mark Stocco have passed the “point of no return”, police claim.

They were last seen at a service station at South Gundagai on Saturday night, although there were two unconfirmed sightings on Monday.

The intense hunt for the father and son, who have been on the run for the past eight years, was sparked after they shot at police on October 16.

Since then they have crossed back and forth over the border of New South Wales and Victoria.

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Two sightings were reported to police on Monday, the first about 1pm at Tarcutta, near Wagga Wagga in NSW, while the second was two hours later at a rest area off the Mid Western Highway at West Wyalong – 150km north of Wagga Wagga.

NSW Police Force Commissioner Andrew Scipione told reporters on Monday it was “time to stop, give yourself up and let us deal with what it is you’ve done”.

“Anyone who shoots at a police officer realises they’ve upped the ante,” he said in Sydney.

“Whatever resources we need to put at this, for as long as it takes, whilst ever they’re out there and we think they’re in NSW, we will hunt them down.

“This has gone far enough. It’s time to come in and talk to us.”

Victoria Police

The Toyota LandCruiser ute was captured on CCTV at Bairnsdale on October 21. Photo: Victoria Police

The last confirmed sighting of the Stoccos was on Saturday night at a service station in South Gundagai when they allegedly stole $200 of fuel.

They were believed to travel hundreds of kilometres each day in a Toyota LandCruiser 4WD, allegedly stolen from a property in Holbrook, to evade police.

The Stoccos have used four different sets of number plates on their 4WD ute. Most recently it was believed to have the South Australian plates S415-AZL.

“In the rural area, it is probably the most common 4WD and we are getting leads that turn out not to be right,” Mr Nugent said.

“But we would much prefer to have that information and discount it than not get that information.”

The Stoccos’ life of crime began 12 years ago when Gino’s marriage broke down and he bought a $100,000 yacht, Sydney Morning Herald reported.

They defrauded people as they sailed from Taree, NSW, to Victoria.

They were caught in December 2006 and were each sentenced to a short stint in jail and hundreds of dollars in fines.

The men are wanted on 13 offences each, including attempted murder. They are also wanted on warrants for property damage in Queensland, dating back to 2007.

Police have urged the public to continue reporting possible sightings but not to approach the men, who have a high-powered rifle and are considered dangerous.

-with AAP

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