A 63-year-old Victoria man was charged with three counts of murder. The man is accused of killing a man along with the man's wife and their son.

Police were called at Mulga Ridge Road at Wedderburn on Wednesday. According to police, it was a "minor neighbourhood dispute," which eventually turned serious. Officers withdrew from the scene after they had heard gunshots and found one corpse. Officers had talked to the suspect for around four hours over the phone before he decided to surrender. Two more corpses were found when the area was searched further. The victims were later identified as Peter and Mary Lockhart, who were in their 70s. Mary's 48-year-old son, Greg Holmes, was also among the victims, ABC News reported. The victims were apparently well-known people in the locality.

According to Detective Superintendent Peter De Santo, the suspect had some history of minor disputes with his neighbours. The disputes he had with his neighbours were "at the very bottom end of disputes between neighbours," he said. De Santo said that it was difficult to understand how the dispute got so serious this time. He also said that the neighbours had no history of violence between each other. Police officers reached the scene at around 8:30 p.m. The suspect surrendered peacefully around the midnight, Herald Sun reported.

Peter, one of the victims, was the president of the Wedderburn Historical Engine and Machinery Society for many years. According to Geoff Maxwell, who is the editor of the society's newsletter, Peter joined the society after retiring from farming. Maxwell called Peter "a very keen member" of the society. He said that the members of the engine club were going to miss what Peter had done. At the same time, Maxwell said that the club was also very good for Peter. While talking about Peter as a person, Maxwell said that he was "all right." "If you got along with him, you were doing well, I think," he said.

Peter's second wife, Mary, took part in the catering for the club during the annual rally. Maxwell said that the couple was in town all their lives. According to Loddon Shire mayor Gavan Holt, every person involved in the dispute was well known in the community.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au