Two men arrested as part of an investigation into cop-killer Dezi Freeman have been released without charge.

The arrests came on Tuesday amid a probe into Freeman’s movements in the lead-up to the shoot-out which killed him.

The 56-year-old triggered one of the country’s largest manhunts after he killed Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waard-Hottart at his Porepunkah home in August, last year.

Freeman fled the scene and evaded police until he was found at a remote Victorian property about 150 kilometres away in March, where he was fatally shot.

The relationship of the arrested men to Freeman and the nature of enquiries has not been disclosed, nor where in north-east Victoria they were arrested.

“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 north-east 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.”

Police confirmed their release on Wednesday morning.

A man and woman, both associates of Freeman, were arrested in April but released without charge.

This week coronial inquiries into the deaths of Freeman and the slain officers have revealed 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.