Category Archives: New South Wales

Ex-Australia Post employee and friend plead guilty in Australian of the Year insider information betting scandal

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The men faced a Melbourne court after being charged following a three-year investigation by federal police into gambling on the annual awards

Two high school friends used insider information to bet on the winner of three Australian of the Year awards, and pocket thousands of dollars, a court has heard.

James Dawkins, 39, and 38-year-old Dean Young fronted Dandenong magistrates court in Melbourne on Thursday after details of their plan came to light.

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Police allege couple murdered Amber Haigh and used pigs to dispose of body, court hears

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Robert Geeves, who has pleaded not guilty, was accused of calling eight neighbours in just 90 minutes seeking permission to access their land, murder trial hears

Police accused Robert and Anne Geeves of murdering teenager Amber Haigh to take her baby and then disposing of her body by feeding it to pigs, the New South Wales supreme court has heard.

The seventh week of the Geeves murder trial heard extraordinary evidence about the arrest of Robert and Anne Geeves in May of 2022, two decades after Haigh disappeared without a trace.

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Two people found dead on yacht in Sydney Harbour amid concerns fumes detected aboard

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Bodies of a man and woman aged in their 50s or 60s found on 47ft yacht moored at Cammeray on Sydney’s north shore

Two people have been found dead on a yacht moored in Sydney’s north, amid concerns fumes were detected aboard.

The bodies of the man and woman were found on Wednesday night after emergency services conducted a welfare check at a mooring at Tunks Park, Cammeray, located on Sydney’s north shore.

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Amber Haigh’s crying baby was cuddled and consoled by Anne Geeves during police interview, court hears

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When detectives asked Anne Geeves, who has pleaded not guilty to her murder, if she had caused harm to missing teenage mother, she swore ‘on the baby’s grave’ she’d done nothing wrong

Within days of Amber Haigh going missing, police told Robert and Anne Geeves they were suspects, interrogating the couple in individual recorded interviews on the teenager’s last known movements.

Haigh was 19 when she vanished from the New South Wales Riverina in June 2002, leaving behind her five-month-old son.

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Couple accused of murdering Amber Haigh gave differing accounts of final car journey with her, court hears

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Robert and Anne Geeves gave inconsistent details to police about their alleged last trip with the 19-year-old

The married couple on trial for murdering Amber Haigh initially gave police investigators differing versions of their alleged final car journey with the teenager.

Haigh was 19 when she vanished without trace from the New South Wales Riverina in June 2002, leaving behind her five-month-old son.

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‘Spot something missing?’: NSW surfer jokes about leg that great white bit off

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Kai McKenzie was critically injured in the attack but on Monday posted a lighthearted photo of himself in hospital flanked by supporters

A young surfer whose leg was severed as he fought off a three-metre shark has joked about the loss of his limb less than a week after the devastating attack.

Kai McKenzie was rushed to hospital along with his leg when he was attacked at the isolated North Shore Beach, near Port Macquarie on the NSW mid-north coast, on Tuesday.

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Youth bail and anti-protest motion voted down at NSW Labor conference

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Critics argued laws were ‘rushed through parliament’ and will result in more Aboriginal children becoming incarcerated

A motion to repeal controversial youth bail and anti-protest laws in New South Wales was defeated at the state Labor conference on Sunday.

The motion was the first opportunity for the youth bail laws, passed by the state government earlier this year, to be debated amongst rank and file party members. The laws make it harder for reoffending 14- to 18-year-olds who commit serious break-and-enter or motor vehicle theft offences to get bail.

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Knife-wielding man shot dead by police in Sydney’s south-west

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The 34-year-old allegedly struck an officer with a knife in Middleton Grange before he was shot

A knife-wielding man has been shot dead in Sydney’s southwest after he allegedly attempted to stab a police officer, who narrowly avoided “catastrophic injuries”.

Emergency services were called to Bird Walton Avenue in Middleton Grange, about 40km from the CBD, about 11pm on Saturday following reports a man was armed with a knife.

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Australian surfer who lost leg in shark attack vows to be back in the water ‘in no time’

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Kai McKenzie, 23, expresses gratitude for outpouring of support in first public comments after attack by ‘biggest shark I’ve ever seen’

An Australian surfer whose leg was bitten off by a shark has promised he’ll be “back in that water in no time” as he recovers from surgery.

Kai McKenzie, 23, was surfing off North Shore beach on the mid-north coast of New South Wales on Tuesday morning when a suspected three-metre great white shark bit him.

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Immigration detainee charged over alleged drug ring operating from inside Villawood detention centre

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Police allege the man used an encrypted messaging service to deal drugs and coordinate a network of runners outside the Sydney facility

An immigration detainee and another man have been charged over an alleged drug ring operating from inside a detention facility.

Police say the 49-year-old dealt large amounts of methylamphetamine using an encrypted messaging service from Villawood immigration detention centre in Sydney’s west.

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NSW boys home grounds to be explored after possible ‘clandestine’ human burial sites revealed

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Government move to engage archaeological specialists comes after ‘suspicious’ locations identified at Kinchela Aboriginal institution

The New South Wales government will engage a specialist to explore the site of a notorious boys home where locations “consistent with clandestine human burials” have been found using ground-penetrating radar.

In September, Guardian Australia revealed there are at least nine “suspicious” sites of possible graves on the grounds of Kinchela Aboriginal Boys Training Home, one of the most violent and abusive institutions of the stolen generations era.

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Labor seeks to avoid controversy over Palestine at NSW conference amid grassroots pressure

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Delegates expect event to pass only what insiders consider the ‘bare minimum’ on recognition motions

Senior Labor figures are attempting to prevent an outbreak of discontent at this weekend’s New South Wales state conference, with delegates expecting the event to pass only what insiders consider the “bare minimum” on recognition motions.

Despite strong pushes from Labor branches and grassroots members for a strong statement on the recognition of Palestine and sanctions on the Israeli government, sources say the party is focused on avoiding a show of disunity.

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NSW EPA investigates consultant accused of faking contamination reports on childcare centre sites

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More than 30 councils relied on reports during development approval process for 135 sites but EPA says no immediate risks to public health identified

An environmental consultant has been accused of falsifying laboratory sampling results in environmental reports that councils used when assessing 135 sites for development across New South Wales – including 24 childcare centres and a school.

The NSW Environment Protection Authority said on Friday it was investigating the allegations about Noel Child of N G Child & Associates and had begun visiting the affected childcare centres to “discuss the issues with the operators”.

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Ceasefire ‘needed desperately’, PM says in joint statement – as it happened

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Q: Will Malarndirri McCarthy, the assistant minister for Indigenous Australians, replace you?

Linda Burney said that was “way above [her] pay grade” but that McCarthy was a dear friend:

The most important thing is for me to support whoever it is in the role and to give them the space to be able to chart their own path … Aboriginal affairs is every minister’s responsibility, not just the minister for Indigenous Australians.

My job is to support that person as much as I can.

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Gladys Berejiklian loses legal challenge against Icac serious corrupt conduct finding

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Former NSW premier sought review of corruption watchdog decision that she failed to declare a personal conflict of interest regarding two government grants

The former New South Wales premier Gladys Berejiklian has lost her legal challenge against an anti-corruption watchdog finding that she engaged in “serious corrupt conduct”.

Berejiklian had argued the finding by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) was invalid because the commissioner was no longer at Icac when the findings were handed down.

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NSW Greens office targeted with Islamophobic and white supremacist graffiti

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Police say they are searching for a male who allegedly vandalised the inner-west Sydney office in what is the latest political graffiti attack

Police are investigating after the New South Wales Greens’ office was graffitied with Islamophobic and white supremacist messages.

The graffiti, which occurred in the early hours of Thursday morning at the office in inner west Sydney, called an Islamic prophet a white supremacist.

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Man dies after trying to drive truck on to NSW ferry; global sea ice levels hit record low – as it happened

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Q: Why target the individuals when it’s state policy?

Penny Wong said the Australian government has been “clear in terms of state-to-state relations about our view on settlements”.

They are unlawful under international law. We’ve been clear about that … We have also said that we want to continue to take steps towards a two-state solution.

That may not be the view of some people in the Israeli government, but that is the view of the Australian government.

These individuals have been involved in violent attacks on Palestinians, including things such as beating, sexual assault and torture, resulting in serious injury and in some cases death.

We have imposed these after careful consideration and we would expect that all Australians would recognise the weight of these.

Settlements are unlawful under international law. We are continuing to act in ways that we can to look to how we protect a pathway to a two-state solution, and part of that is to ensure we also impose penalties who perpetrate violence against Palestinians.

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Ex-coalminer awarded $3.2m for black lung in Australian first

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A judge accepts Craig Keogh will never work again after developing pneumoconiosis from working in NSW and Queensland mines

A coalminer who developed black lung due to his employers’ negligence has been awarded a landmark legal victory and a multimillion-dollar payout.

Craig Keogh, a machine operator at New South Wales and Queensland mines, became the first Australian to win a black lung case at trial, paving the way for other sufferers to make successful compensation claims.

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In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org

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NT military exercise suspended after pilot escapes crash – as it happened

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Import ban fails to curb flow of Nazi-linked items

The number of items imported into Australia bearing Nazi imagery has not been slowed by a national ban on the symbols, AAP reports.

The importation into Australia of Nazi memorabilia, both historically genuine items and modern recreations, has not abated with the passage of [the ban].

Where these goods are imported in quantities which indicates the goods are likely to be traded, the Australian Border Force refers the goods to the Australian federal police to consider investigation under the criminal code.

Consumers are crying out for clear information on how to save money, protect their health and reduce emissions – and they want that information online where they make their purchasing decisions.

We call on the state and federal governments to give consumers the real truth about the risks of gas appliances, by mandating comprehensive pollution labels on all their ads and websites.

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NSW teachers to embrace ‘step by step’ explicit instruction method amid major syllabus shake-up

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State becomes first to mandate methodology in overhaul educators hope will allow disabled and disadvantaged students catch up to their peers

The New South Wales curriculum has had its biggest shakeup in five decades with better connections between subjects, more detailed concepts and skills, and a move away from the student-led approach to learning towards “explicit instruction”.

On Wednesday, new K-6 syllabuses for health, creative arts, human society and its environment, and science were released to teachers, with updated maths and English syllabuses in classrooms from this year.

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