The mysterious and brutal murder of a beloved farmer in country Victoria is no real mystery to anyone who lives out that way.

Ask locals in the township of Ouyen, about 450km north-west of Melbourne near the South Australian border, and they’ll tell you exactly who they think killed Richard Wills.

Victorian detectives believe the 65-year old suffered a horrendous ordeal before being fatally shot, including being dragged behind a vehicle and buried in a shallow grave.

Mr Wills, known as Ricky among locals, had reportedly ‘gone to work’ at his rural property on the Mallee Highway about 8am after his daily farewell kiss for his wife of 32 years, Donna.

When he didn’t return for lunch, family members scoured the 400-hectare share-cropping and livestock farm to no avail.

Mrs Wills reported him missing when he still hadn’t returned the following morning.

His body was found by police about 1.30pm the next day. He had been fatally shot and left to rot.

Daily Mail made the journey across Victoria to try and work out who would have wanted the father-of-five dead.

The front gates to what had been Richard Wills' slice of his parents' former farm. Police tape (left) remained taped to a gate this week
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The front gates to what had been Richard Wills’ slice of his parents’ former farm. Police tape (left) remained taped to a gate this week

Victorian farmer Kevin Butler had sensationally branded sheep rustling across Victoria as the ‘Bondi massacre in the bush’.

‘If this shocking death happened at Bondi, it would be plastered everywhere with the same passion police had in finding [cop-killer] Dezi Freeman – no matter the cost and with every resource called in,’ he previously posted on social media.

‘But not for this farmer, who could have been you or me.

‘We’ve heard NOTHING since from police. The silence here is hardly golden – it smacks of unconscionable indifference and incompetence.’

Daily Mail has chosen not to name the man on the lips of everyone in the town of Ouyen – a quiet spot on the map with a population of about 1000.

Cruel – and false – AI stories targeting his wife have been laughed out of town too.

Fingers pointed at son-in-law Ben Phillips are also based on absolute nonsense and are total lies.

Richard Wills and his wife Donna. Mr Wills was born and bred in Ouyen and died there on Easter Sunday
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Richard Wills and his wife Donna. Mr Wills was born and bred in Ouyen and died there on Easter Sunday

Mr Wills was loved deeply by his immediate family and was well regarded in town as a likeable knockabout.

He didn’t drink much, he never ventured far from home and was described as a ‘quiet bloke’.

And despite previous reports, he was not much of a farmer, locals say.

It’s a fair and understandable observation when you take a look at the farm where Mr Wills met his fate.

Located about seven kilometres down the road from his Hughes Street home, the ‘farm’ resembles a desolate, sandy desert.

What few sheep could be seen on the property would have been suitable for a day-long, slow-roasted mutton curry.

‘He was no farmer,’ one friend of ‘Ricky’ told the Daily Mail.

The notion seemed comical to those who knew him well or had gone to school with him.

Police tape remained tied to a gate outside the Ouyen property where detectives believe Mr Wills was shot dead
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Police tape remained tied to a gate outside the Ouyen property where detectives believe Mr Wills was shot dead

The Wills family farm resembles a desert
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The Wills family farm resembles a desert

‘We all had a good laugh when we read these stories about gangsters killing him to get his sheep. You wouldn’t want em,’ another mate said.

While locals were happy to talk freely about Mr Wills, none wanted to be named out of fear of repercussions from a man they’re all very worried about.

That man is an acquaintance of Mr Wills.

The alleged motive, according to those who knew the family, is straightforward, but cannot be reported for legal reasons.

A walk through the Ouyen cemetery quickly establishes the family’s long connection to the region.

His mother, father and long lost relatives are all buried within the soil they worked, lived upon and loved.

Tragically, Mr Wills’ 19-year old daughter Montana rests alongside generations of her family.

She died on Boxing Day in 2015 from what locals claimed was an asthma attack.

An old chain sits on the property owned by the Wills and his extended family
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An old chain sits on the property owned by the Wills and his extended family

Sheep take shade under one of the few trees on Mr Wills' Ouyen property. Locals suggested he 'was no farmer'
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Sheep take shade under one of the few trees on Mr Wills’ Ouyen property. Locals suggested he ‘was no farmer’

Montana had been a victim of what was the world’s worst recorded thunderstorm asthma attack.

It claimed eight lives and saw more than 8500 people hospitalised in Victoria.

Her death gutted the Wills family and the entire community.

Mr Wills had also lost his sister Lorraine in tragic circumstances.

Locals say she was run over by her own vehicle as she attempted to escape what they described as a toxic relationship across the border in South Australia.

Daily Mail attempted to speak with Mrs Wills at the home where she last saw her husband alive, but she was long gone.

Neighbours claimed she had told them she no longer wished to speak with anyone about her ordeal and had got out of town.

The death of Mr Wills’ parents is believed to have kicked-off an ugly dispute over land entitlements

One local described Mr Wills to the Daily Mail as a ‘bit of a mess’.

‘He wasn’t a very big farmer. It’s very small actually. I read he’s a large farmer and a workaholic, and I thought “I don’t think either one of them is right”,’ one person said.

‘A pretty poor farmer … he had no money. He was broke.’

Land in the region has never been regarded as expensive, with some valuing an acre at about $1000 a lot.

Locals can’t recall anyone ever being murdered in Ouyen itself before.

While police have publicly asked for members of the public to provide dashcam footage they may have captured on the day Mr Wills was murdered, they have not yet bothered to ask his direct neighbours for CCTV footage. (There is no suggestion they were involved).

A spokesperson for Victoria Police refused to comment on claims they had a suspect in clear sight.

‘We would never be able to comment on who is or isn’t a person of interest in an investigation,’ the spokesperson said.

The murder of Richard Wills is the talk of everyone at the local watering hole in Ouyen
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The murder of Richard Wills is the talk of everyone at the local watering hole in Ouyen

Like many small towns scattered across the region, Ouyen's township has a war memorial, a bakery, pub and not much else
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Like many small towns scattered across the region, Ouyen’s township has a war memorial, a bakery, pub and not much else

‘The investigation into the murder of Richard Wills in Ouyen remains active and ongoing.

‘Police would like to thank members of the Ouyen and wider communities for the information they have been able to provide so far.

‘However, there is unfortunately misinformation spreading on social media – at this stage, detectives have no intelligence to link the involvement of organised crime related theft of livestock to the investigation.’

Worried locals have no fear about organised criminals knocking off farmers in the region.

Daily Mail struggled to spot a sheep within hundreds of kilometres heading along the highway into Ouyen.

But they remain concerned about the man they believe murdered Mr Wills.

‘We want to know what the cops are doing about it. Is he on the run? Has he been spoken to?’ a worried local said.

‘Are they watching him? We don’t know. No-one knows what is going on.’

Donna Wills faced the media shortly after the body of her husband was found. She has previously dismissed claims he was killed by the 'Merino Mafia' but claimed to be oblivious as to who might have killed him
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Donna Wills faced the media shortly after the body of her husband was found. She has previously dismissed claims he was killed by the ‘Merino Mafia’ but claimed to be oblivious as to who might have killed him

Apart from the local newspaper, no major media outlet had set foot on the ground in Ouyen until the Daily Mail arrived.

‘This bloke is not a local. We don’t know where he’s from, but he was a blow-in,’ a man said.

‘He apparently has started some trouble with others. You know. He’s been aggressive and has got in a few people’s faces.’

Some claimed police had already been alerted to the troublesome stranger’s behaviour.

Out at Mr Wills’ farm, the remains of police tape remained tied to the double gates outside the main entrance.

But if you venture around back, along Dingo Tank Road, entry to the property has been left wide open.

Young locals had already been across the property searching for the shallow grave where police allege they found Mr Wills’ body.

‘It’s still there. The hole in the ground,’ one local claimed. ‘Some young blokes have been out there and reckon they saw it still there.’

Richard Wills was described as a quiet, but likeable man who kept pretty much to himself
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Richard Wills was described as a quiet, but likeable man who kept pretty much to himself

Richard Wills was a family man
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Richard Wills was a family man

Daily Mail observed scorched earth on the property and a large chain left behind a ramshackle shed, but did not lay eyes on the supposed grave site.

Back at Ouyen cemetery, a marker positioned next to Mr Wills’ beloved daughter Montana sits at the spot he will eventually be laid to rest beneath.

But for now, the small community that once prided itself on knowing everyone’s business is left wondering whether the man they fear most is watching from the shadows – or has already disappeared back into the vast Victorian plains with blood money in his pocket.

Anyone with further information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit an anonymous report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au