Almost 500,000 vapes have been seized by police in the largest operation in Australian history. 

Police discovered the vapes on April 17 following a tip-off that identified a property in West Melbourne was being used by an organised crime syndicate for the trafficking of illicit tobacco products.

Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Martin O'Brien said the estimated street value of the vapes was $15 million.

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"Over the past 12 months in Victoria we have seen the illicit tobacco market become a significant driver of organised crime groups, with an array of serious and violent offending taking place as these groups fight over profit," O'Brien said.

"Taskforce Lunar was established back in October last year and has worked closely with a range of specialist units including the VIPER Taskforce to target these organised crime groups.

"We have seen almost 100 people arrested in connection to illicit tobacco as well as multiple large-scale seizures of illegally imported product."

Police arrested six men at the commercial address, including two 20-year-old Melbourne men, a 37-year-old Point Cook man, a 31-year-old Southbank man, a 33-year-old Adelaide man and a 24-year-old man of no fixed place of address.

All six were interviewed and released pending further enquiries.

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Since new vape import regulations took effect on January 1, the Australian Border Force (ABF) has stopped hundreds of thousands of illegal disposable vapes and vape products from entering the country.

"While the investigation is ongoing – this is the largest identification of suspected unlawful vapes we've seen to date – sending a clear message to those seeking to supply vapes," Minister Mark Butler said.

"Already more than 611,000 have been seized at the border.

Victoria Police has been working closely with the Therapeutic Goods Administration, which will now take primacy of the investigation.

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

A police officer accused of murdering a Sydney couple has not made a plea to the double murder charges as his lawyer admits things are "a bit tough" for the alleged killer.

Luke Davies and his partner Jesse Baird were allegedly murdered in Sydney's east when Beaumont Lamarre-Condon shot them with his service weapon while off-duty in February.

The crime was allegedly committed in Baird's home in inner-city Paddington.

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The 28-year-old senior constable was sacked from the NSW Police Force after being arrested and charged with both men's murders.

He remains in custody.

Lamarre-Condon's lawyer John Walford appeared before Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court today.

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He told Deputy Chief Magistrate Sharon Freund that his client had only received a partial brief of evidence from police.

Freund adjourned the case for eight weeks, as requested by police prosecutors.

The case will return to court on June 18.

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Outside court, Walford did not say whether his client would plead guilty or not guilty to the charges.

But he said Lamarre-Condon was alright, given the circumstances.

"It's a bit tough for him at the moment," he told reporters.

Today's developments come after Davies was remembered at a memorial service in Brisbane on Sunday. Baird was farewelled at a funeral in Melbourne in March.

Those who knew the couple spoke fondly of them, wanting them remembered as they lived rather than for their tragic ends.

Police allege Lamarre-Condon's February 19 attack was premeditated after a months-long campaign of "predatory behaviour" targeting Mr Baird, who the officer briefly dated.

The couple's bodies were not located until February 27, when they were found inside surfboard bags at the fence line of a rural property in Bungonia near Goulburn, about 200km southwest of Sydney.

Lamarre-Condon joined the force in 2019 and previously ran a celebrity blog, posing with dozens of A-listers including Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus and Harry Styles.

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A culturally significant Australian nut dating back to the Jurassic period could have a big future on the global food stage after new research confirmed its substantial health benefits.

Queensland University's Dr Jaqueline Moura Nadolny, from the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, said the bunya nut was an energy and nutrient-rich bushfood with huge commercial potential.

"Bunya nuts are low in fat, high in fibre, gluten free and contain all the essential amino acids, protein and folate, while the husk is high in antioxidant compounds," Nadolny said.

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"Indigenous Australians boiled and roasted them, but they can be eaten straight out of the cone, ground into flour, brewed into tea and even fermented."

Nadolny said bunya nuts could be as commercially successful as similar nuts from the same family in Brazil and Chile, but the industry in Australia faced stark environmental challenges.

"Established bunya trees are under threat from phytophthora, a root rot that causes dieback," she said.

"It's critical new trees are planted, as well as grafted to speed up fruiting to within five or six years."

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She said each tree could produce hundreds of cones, each containing up to 100 nuts.

"In South America, grafting has helped boost production," she said.

Shannon Bauwens, cultural services coordinator for the Bunya People's Aboriginal Corporation, welcomed Nadolny's research.

"The bunya nut has a strong cultural significance to traditional owners and other Indigenous peoples who gathered for thousands of years in pre-colonial times for feasting and ceremonies," he said.

"The Bunya Mountains in southern Queensland are home to the largest known stand of the species in the world, and the trees live for hundreds of years.

"Creating an industry surrounding the bunya nut would not only ensure its survival but create a sustainable industry for mob, allowing them to share their knowledge with the community."

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Nadolny said bunya nuts could be the centre of a thriving Indigenous enterprise.

"I work with Indigenous communities who are interested in harvesting, selling and producing food products from the nuts, creating jobs and income," she said.

"Taking measures now to ensure a healthy future for Australia's bunya trees could lead to showcasing this incredible Indigenous food and its potential to the world."

The research paper was published in Food Research International.

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Photos of the New Zealand house show creepers and plants breaking through cracks, holes in the walls, black mould, and more.

Bondi locals have this morning taken to the ocean for a collective "moment of reflection" after the Westfield stabbing spree rocked the community.

The Bronte Surf Life Saving Club posted on Facebook that members of the Waverley community were invited to join a "paddle out" from 6am.

"If you're not comfortable in the water, you're welcome to join on the beach for a shared moment of reflection," they wrote.

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The event is expected to last about an hour.

It comes as the floral tributes that have been piling up outside and within Westfield Bondi Junction are removed, over a week after Joel Cauchi, 40, killed six people and wounded at least a dozen others in a stabbing rampage through the shopping centre on Saturday, April 13.

A number of people Cauchi wounded remain in hospital.

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This morning's paddle-out follows a number of community events held for people who are mourning the shopping centre attack.

This Sunday saw thousands gather at a park on Bondi Beach for a candle-light vigil, including NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott, who fatally shot Cauchi after entering the shopping centre alone.

Last Thursday, the Westfield where the stabbing spree took place also re-opened without trading for a "day of reflection", with people encouraged to leave flowers inside.

Trading resumed the next day, with a heightened security presence.

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The person was located by a ride-share driver on Sunday morning.

Union members rejected the offers and voted to strike for 25 hours from May 7.

The victim was left with facial injuries and a cut to the back of her head.

‘We keep thinking, why didn’t we hear anything?’ another neighbour said.

A man has allegedly murdered his ex-partner – a young mother of one – in what police have described as a "brutal" and "terribly violent" case of domestic violence.

The 29-year-old man was arrested in the New South Wales town of Fifield this morning after the body of 28-year-old teacher's assistant Molly Ticehurst was found in a home in nearby Forbes this morning.

This afternoon, he was charged with murder (DV) and contravening a prohibition/restriction in an apprehended violence order.

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Police said the man is Ticehurst's ex-partner.

"Both persons are known to each other," Detective Inspector Jason Darcy said to media this afternoon.

"We can confirm it's a former domestic relationship."

Police are also investigating reports that the man went to Ticehurst's workplace last week before being moved on, although Darcy said it was too early to confirm those reports.

The detective inspector said the crime scene where her body was found was "brutal".

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"I was there this morning," Darcy said.

"It was, I would say, pretty brutal. My thoughts go out to the family of the young lady."

"It was terribly violent," he later added.

"I've (had) 34 years in the police, a former homicide detective, I've been to a few (crime scenes) and it was quite brutal."

Ticehurst's young child was not at the home where she was found, with police saying the child is now "safe".

Police have asked for anyone with dashcam or CCTV footage of Young Street in Forbes or Fifield at around 2am today to contact them as their investigation into the alleged murder continues.

The accused man has been refused bail to appear in Orange Local Court.

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).