Tag Archives: oceania

Father of slain paramedic calls for 'Steven's law'

The father of the paramedic who was allegedly killed at a Sydney McDonald's is calling for "Steven's Law" to protect frontline workers.

Steven Tougher, 29, was allegedly stabbed to death while on a break with his colleagues in Campbelltown around 5.30am last Friday.

His death was described as one of the "darkest days" for the NSW Ambulance service.

READ MORE: 'Debt avalanche' to hit millions with student loans

Steven's father Jeff Tougher posted on Facebook asking others to support in his advocacy for "stronger laws".

Jordan Fineanganofo, 21, from Raby, was charged with murder and will remain behind bars until his case returns to court in June.

Steven's father Jeff Tougher posted on Facebook asking others to support his advocacy for "stronger laws" to protect emergency service workers.

Tougher said he wanted mandatory life sentences for any emergency service worker killed on the job and mandatory prison terms for anyone assaulted.

READ MORE: Acrobat dies after being dropped by husband

Paramedic Steven Tougher is being remembered after allegedly being stabbed to death outside a Sydney McDonald's

"I know that it will not affect this case but for any future hideous acts, maybe justice will be seen to be done," Tougher wrote on Facebook.

"I'm asking for these laws to protect the service community so they don't have to look over their shoulder while they are performing CPR on an unconscious baby.

He is urging people to push for the laws and for them to be called "Steven's Law".

READ MORE: Clue devastating plague could be looming

Steven Tougher on his wedding day recentlyFlowers laid at Campbelltown McDonald's after a paramedic as allegedly stabbed to death by a 21-year-old man.

His wife, parents and sister issued a statement on behalf of the entire family, saying the young paramedic's compassion was "exceptional".

"Steven's dedication to helping others shone brightest during his work as a NSW Ambulance paramedic and previously as a nurse," the family said.

"But it wasn't just his medical expertise that made him exceptional – Steven's compassion touched the lives of so many people."

Steven Tougher had married the love of his life last month and his wife is pregnant with their second child, who is due in the next few weeks.

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

Woman accused of plotting woodchipper murder of ex-partner has trial adjourned

The trial of a Queensland woman accused of organising the murder of an ex-partner found in a woodchipper has been adjourned until October.

Sharon Graham, 62, pleaded not guilty in Brisbane Supreme Court to the murder of Bruce James Saunders at a property near Gympie in November 2017.

Graham had been accused of plotting to kill 53-year-old Saunders in order to inherit his house, car and more than $800,000 in superannuation and life insurance.

READ MORE: Acrobat dies after being dropped by husband

Sharon Graham, 61, and Bruce Saunders, 54, whose body was found in a woodchipper in Brisbane in 2017.

It was alleged Graham procured her new lover Gregory Lee Roser to carry out the murder of Saunders before his body was partially fed into a woodchipper to create the appearance of an accidental death.

The jury had been told it was not in dispute that Saunders had been "deliberately and unlawfully killed" by Roser under the guise of helping a widow clear trees on her land.

Saunders had been helping clear the rural property in Goomboorian, north of Brisbane, with Roser and another man, Peter John Koenig, at the time.

READ MORE: 'Debt avalanche' to hit millions with student loans

Peter Koenig (left), Greg Roser (centre) and Sharon Graham (right).

Graham was about an hour's drive away from the scene when the murder took place.

However, the court was told Graham engaged in the "counselling and procurement" of Roser to murder Saunders.

Koenig was the only person to see Roser hit Saunders from behind with a metal pipe and then repeatedly strike the victim's head before the body was fed into the chipper, the jury was told.

The trial before Justice Peter Callaghan was on Tuesday adjourned until October 9 with Graham remanded in custody.

Wife of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak loses $91 million in single day

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's wife, Akshata Murty, lost about $91 million on Monday (Tuesday AEDT) after shares in the Indian technology company founded by her father fell sharply.

She has a 0.93 per cent stake in the software company, Infosys, worth approximately $1 billion.

Murthy is the daughter of N. R. Narayana Murthy, one of India's richest people.

READ MORE: 'Secret Chinese police station' uncovered in New York City

Infosys shares tumbled after a downgraded outlook for the Indian tech sector, the Australian Financial Review reports.

They closed down 9.4 per cent, the biggest drop since March 2020.

Meanwhile, Sunak is under investigation over allegations he failed to disclose shares Murty owns in a childcare business that stands to benefit from his government's budget, a parliamentary watchdog disclosed.

Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Daniel Greenberg opened an inquiry last week for possible violations of the code of conduct that calls on members to be "open and frank" in declaring relevant financial interests, according to an update given to British MPs who returned on Monday from Easter break.

Parliament requires members to disclose financial interests within four weeks of something they said or actions they took that may have been influenced by a financial interest.

READ MORE: Akshata Murty: Rishi Sunak's wife is richer than royalty

A Sunak spokesperson says he did not make a declaration as a member of parliament but had recorded a "ministerial interest", the equivalent disclosure for government ministers.

The government's budget announced last month includes a massive expansion of free childcare for working families with children from nine months to four years old.

The plan included financial incentives to people who joined the childcare profession and doubled the incentive if it was done through a private agency.

Murty has shares in Koru Kids, which is listed on a government website as one of six such agencies.

The organisation praised the new incentives in the budget as "great".

READ MORE: Fears Australia will enter a consumer recession after forecast

Sunak was asked to "come clean" about his family's financial interests last month after being grilled by members of parliament over why the childcare policy favoured private agencies.

When asked if he had any interests to declare, Sunak did not mention his wife's shares.

"No, all my disclosures are declared in the normal way," he said.

At the time, Sunak's press secretary said his interests would be included in an update of ministers' interests in May.

Sunak promised "integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level" when he took office in October.

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

Teenage girl bitten by police dogcharged after 'stolen car' crashed

A 17-year-old girl bitten by a police dog in a police pursuit has been charged after allegedly crashing a stolen car and fleeing into bushland in Sydney's west

Police initiated a chase after allegedly seeing the stolen Toyota Kluger SUV driving at high speeds on the Great Western Highway Eastern Creek just before midnight yesterday.

The 17-year-old driver allegedly failed to stop and crashed into a semi-trailer at the M7 off-ramp intersection with four other teenage girls inside. 

READ MORE: WA town prepping for once-in-a-lifetime total solar eclipse

The group – aged between 13 and 17 – then ran into nearby bushland, where a police dog bit the alleged driver.

The group were arrested and taken into custody at Mount Druitt police station.

Four girls – aged 13, 14 and two 15-year-olds – were released after being issued a youth caution.

The 17-year-old was treated by paramedics for the dog bite and taken to Westmead Hospital.

She remains under police guard and has been charged with failing to stop in a police pursuit, driving recklessly, taking a car without consent, driving without a licence and breaching bail. 

The girl has been refused bail and will face a bedside hearing today.

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

How to watch the eclipse

Western Australia will be graced by a rare total solar eclipse in just days, a stellar occurrence the state hasn't seen since the '70s.

The sun will completely disappear behind the moon over Ningaloo, 1200 kilometres north of Perth, on April 20 at 11:29am AWST – making it the first for Western Australia since 1974.

All other states across the country will experience a partial eclipse at 1:29pm (AEST), with the next full solar eclipse for Australia's eastern states coming up in 2028.

WATCH LIVE: We will livestream the total solar eclipse from 1pm AEST at 9news.com.au on Thursday

READ MORE: Is Australia facing another COVID-19 winter wave?

Western Australia will be graced by a rare solar eclipse next week, a stellar occurrence the state hasn't seen since 1974.

How to watch the solar eclipse 

Looking directly into the sun, even during a solar eclipse, is dangerous and can lead to permanent eye damage.

"Staying safe is critical when observing a solar eclipse," Dr Andrew Cameron from Swinburne University of Technology said.

"The number one rule is to never look directly at the sun with the naked eye, as even a brief glimpse can permanently damage your eyesight."

The Astronomical Society of Australia suggests watching the eclipse and partial eclipse in two safe ways:

  • Using special-purpose 'eclipse glasses' or hand-held solar viewers with solar filters that meet the international standard
  • Using pinhole projection through a large card with a two-millimetre hole in the centre to project an image of the Sun onto another surface held about a metre away.

Cameron says the pinhole viewer method is best, and cautions that safety glasses need to be used carefully.

"Protective eclipse glasses are another solution," he said.

"But extreme care should be taken to ensure that they are both properly rated for solar viewing and are completely undamaged, as even a small scratch can allow enough light through to cause injury."

You can purchase solar-safe glasses online. They must meet the international ISO 12312 2 standard requirements to be considered safe.

You can find out more about the requirements here

READ MORE: Anzac Day trading hours: What will and won't be open

Where can you watch the eclipse?

Not everyone will get a good view of the eclipse, and only sungazers (but again, please don't actually gaze right at the sun) in some parts of Western Australia will be able to enjoy the total eclipse at 11:29am (local time).

Viewed from the North West Cape peninsula in Western Australia, the moon will completely hide the sun," Professor Michael Wheatland, an expert in solar astrophysics at the University of Sydney, said.

"Here, the path of totality will just cross the coast, including the towns of Exmouth and Learmonth."

The rest of the country isn't quite so lucky though.

"For most of Australia, the eclipse will be partial – the moon will only partly block the sun," Wheatland said.

"In Sydney there will be, at most, about a 19 per cent coverage by area of the sun (starting from 1:37pm).

"This eclipse is somewhat unusual, in that it is a hybrid eclipse – which means that it changes from an annular eclipse (where the Moon is smaller than the Sun on the sky) to a total eclipse, and then back to an annular eclipse, along the path of the shadow on the Earth."

READ MORE: When should you get your influenza vaccine ahead of flu season?



What is an eclipse?

A solar eclipse happens when the moon's orbit passes between the sun and the earth at the same time, creating a shadow on the Earth that partially or fully blocks the sun's face.

"Solar eclipses are spectacular," The President of the Astronomical Society of Australia John Lattanzio said.

"Australia really is the lucky country with five total eclipses visible in various parts of the country over the next 15 years."

READ MORE: Mystery Aussie winner takes home $30 million

Western Australia will be graced by a rare solar eclipse next week, a stellar occurrence the state hasn't seen since 1974.

Total solar eclipses are a rare occurrence, usually only gracing one location every couple hundred years, but they're not quite as rare as popular theory would have you believe.

"Total solar eclipses are special events, but not as rare as people think," Professor Steven Tingay, the executive director of the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy, said.

"On average, there is a total solar eclipse every 18 months or so. However, any given eclipse does not last very long, or cover a very large area on the surface of the earth.

"Total solar eclipses are visible from a given location on the earth every 300 to 400 years, which is why most people think of them as rare."

The last total eclipse was seen in Australia more than 10 years ago.

"Our last total solar eclipse was in November 2012, with Cairns right in the path of totality," amateur astronomer and eclipse chaser Terry Cuttle said.

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.