Following the robbery, the government offered a £50 reward for the culprit's apprehension, and MacPherson left Queensland for New South Wales, with the aim of joining up with a bushranging gang, that included Ben Hall, Frank Gardiner, John Gilbert and John Dunn. MacPherson is said to have committed highway robberies on his way to find the gang, and to have combined his father's given and mother's maiden name to create the alias "John Bruce". Other aliases included "Mar", "Kerr", "Scotia" and "Scotchie".