Tag Archives: oceania

Allegedly drunk driver decorates car, drives through busy square

Police have swooped on an accused drink driver who paraded his car, heavily decorated in Christmas fairy lights and trinkets through the middle of a busy Adelaide pedestrian zone, before allegedly returning a positive breath test.

The grey Mazda shrouded in festive ornaments and blasting carols drove through Henley Square just after 8pm on Sunday.

After the man drove a lap around the square, witnesses say he sat there, parked in his car for several minutes before police arrived.

Police have swooped on an accused drink driver who paraded his car, heavily decorated in Christmas fairy lights and trinkets through the middle of a busy Adelaide pedestrian zone, before allegedly returning a positive breath test.

The 65-year-old driver from Croyden Park said he had taken a wrong turn, according to police. 

Officers say he returned a positive breath test of 0.071, and has now been charged with drink driving and dangerous driving.

The man's car was impounded for 28 days, and he is expected to face court at a later date.

READ MORE: Blackout warning as major heatwave to impact millions this week

READ MORE: Father stabbed three times during Facebook Marketplace meet-up

This article was produced with the assistance of 9ExPress.

‘A bit disappointing’: Giraffe in Myer’s Christmas window display vandalised

Police are investigating after a giraffe head attached to Myer's annual Christmas windows in Melbourne's CBD was vandalised over the weekend.

Hundreds of people today lined up to get a glimpse of the windows, which this year have the theme of Australia Zoo.

Jeannie the giraffe was removed for repairs today, with her head restored within hours.

READ MORE: Police engaged in 'joint criminal enterprise' to get Tony Mokbel, judge finds

Police believe the giraffe's head was removed on Saturday night.

Families today told 9News they were shocked by the vandalism.

"That's a bit disappointing – because it's Christmas, it's for the kids," one woman said.

It's the second incident to impact the Myer windows after protesters forced the department store to cancel its opening event.

Cameras capture stunning moment massive avalanche engulfs mountain valley

Cameras have captured a massive avalanche engulfing the entire valley below in seconds in China.

The dramatic moment was captured by surveillance cameras in the Oytagh Glacier Park scenic area in Akto County.

The video shows an enormous mass of snow cascading down from the summit of Chakragil in the Kunlun Mountains in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Regionat 6pm on Thursday.

READ MORE: Hunt for gun and ammunition stolen from unmarked police car

Cameras captured a  massive avalanche engulfing the entire valley below in seconds in China.Cameras captured a  massive avalanche engulfing the entire valley below in seconds in China.

READ MORE: Gorilla at a Canadian zoo dies after worker mistakenly activates wrong door

As the avalanche unfolded, the snow accumulated rapidly, forming a towering "snow wall" tens of metres high and covering the entire valley in less than a minute.

Fortunately, the avalanche happened in an uninhabited high-altitude area, so no injuries or casualties were reported

The Chakragil, which is more than 6000 meters above sea level, is constantly covered with snow.

The region had recently experienced heavy snowfall, resulting in a build-up of snow thick enough to trigger the avalanche.

– reported with Associated Press.

READ MORE: Why the asbestos in our homes is becoming more dangerous

Nine Aussies flew to Bali in 2005. Only one has ever come home

Nine Australians. More than eight kilograms of heroin. A street value of $4 million.

It was the international crime that rocked Australia in 2005, and now it looks like the last members of the Bali Nine serving prison sentences could be coming home.

Here's everything you need to know about the Bali Nine, their crimes, sentences, and what could finally bring the last of them back to Australia.

READ MORE: The 'barriers' putting a $1.5 billion health burden on western Sydney

Who are the Bali Nine?

In April 2005, nine Australians were caught trying to smuggle more than 8.3kg of heroin out of Indonesia.

Those Aussies were Andrew Chan, Myuran Sukumaran, Si Yi Chen, Michael Czugaj, Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen, Matthew Norman, Scott Rush, Martin Stephens and Renae Lawrence.

Under ringleaders Chan and Sukumaran, the group planned to smuggle the drugs into Australia where they'd be worth about $4 million.

Instead, Indonesian police with the support of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) detained and arrested the nine involved before they ever left Indonesian soil.

READ MORE: More victims of suspected methanol poisoning in Laos named

How did the Bali Nine get caught?

The AFP had suspicions that Sukumaran, Chan, Lawrence and Norman were involved in international drug smuggling before they travelled to Bali in April 2005.

It was believed that those four were part of a larger syndicate that had smuggled a large amount of heroin from Indonesia to Australia in 2004, so when they travelled to Indonesia again in 2005, the AFP was watching.

It alerted Indonesian police to the group's presence in Bali and shared key details about the individuals involved, including their names, passport numbers, and possible links to the illegal drug trade.

Indonesian police started surveilling the group and continued the surveillance for a full week before arresting them on April 17, 2005.

Six were arrested at Denpasar airport after Stephens, Lawrence, Rush and Czugaj were discovered with packages of heroin strapped to their bodies.

Chan and Sukumaran were also arrested there in relation to the drugs, though neither were found with drugs on their person.

The remaining three — Chen, Nguyen and Norman — were arrested at the Maslati Hotel at Kuta Beach with about 300 grams of heroin in their possession.

Not long after the news broke in Australia, the group were dubbed the 'Bali Nine'.

READ MORE: One-in-10 NSW drivers test positive for illegal drugs as calls for crackdown grow

What happened to the Bali Nine?

Trials for the nine Australians commenced in Indonesia over four consecutive days in October 2005.

Seven were sentenced to life in prison by the Denpasar district court: Lawrence, Rush, Czugaj, Stephens, Norman, Chen and Nguyen.

Seven of nine Australian drug smuggling suspects, from left to right, Scott Rush, Myuran Sukumaran, Tanduc Tan Nguyen, Matthew Norman, Andrew Chan, Si Yi Chan and Renae Lawrence sit att he prosecutors office in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, Monday, Aug. 15, 2005. Police have handed over their case filed to the prosecutors office, indicating that the nine could go on trial in the coming weeks. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati)

In a shocking move, ringleaders Chan and Sukumaran were sentenced to death by firing squad.

It was the first time in recorded history that the Denpasar district court handed down death sentences for drug trafficking and sent shockwaves out around the world.

All members of the Bali Nine lodged appeals against their sentences and while some who had received life sentences had them reduced, others faced a much more dire outcome.

Lawrence successfully appealed to have her life sentence reduced to 20 years.

Czugaj successfully appealed for a reduced 20-year jail term, only to have it overturned and his life sentence reimposed.

READ MORE: What is going on with Australia's vaping laws?

Chen and Norman appealed and had their life sentences reduced to 20 years, only for those appeal verdicts to be overturned and the death penalty imposed.

Rush and Nguyen also appealed to have their life sentences reduced and were instead sentenced to death.

In March 2008, it was revealed that Norman, Chen and Nguyen's sentences had been quietly reduced to life in prison. A few months later, Rush's death sentence was also reduced to life imprisonment.

Chan and Sukumaran both appealed to have their death sentences reduced and, when those appeals were rejected, begged for clemency. Both were rejected.

How many of the Bali Nine were executed?

The two ringleaders of the Bali Nine, Sukumaran and Chan, were executed in 2015.

Bali Nine members Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan in a holding cell at Denpasar Court in February 2006. (AAP)

The executions went ahead despite multiple attempts by Sukumaran and Chan to appeal their sentences, applications for judicial reviews, and bids from both for clemency.

Then-Prime Minister Tony Abbott also appealed directly to Then-Indonesian President Joko Widodo to stop the executions.

"We oppose the death penalty for Australians at home and abroad," he said in January, 2015.

"We obviously respect the legal systems of other countries, but where there is an attempt to impose the death penalty on an Australian, we make the strongest possible diplomatic representations."

READ MORE: What's going to happen to interest rates and when are they going to fall?

The executions were delayed and put on hold several times as avenues to save Sukumaran and Chan's lives were explored, but they ultimately went ahead just over 10 years after they were arrested.

The two men were executed by firing squad at a prison on Nusakambangan island in central Java on April 29, 2015.

Are any of the Bali Nine still in jail?

At the time of writing, five of the Bali Nine remain in prison in Indonesia.

Lawrence was released in November 2018 after serving almost 13 years in prison. Her sentence was reduced for good behavior and she was deported to Australia.

Convicted drug mule Renae Lawrence takes part in Indonesian Independence Day activities inside Kerobokan jail in Bali, Indonesia on Friday, Aug. 17, 2012. The only female member of the so called Bali Nine has been recommended for a six-month cut to her 20-year sentence for drug smuggling.

Nguyen died in prison in May 2018 from stomach cancer.

The remaining five members of the Bali Nine — Chen, Czugaj, Norman, Rush and Stephens — are still serving out their sentences in Indonesian jails, but that could soon change.

Will the Bali Nine ever be released?

A private conversation between Albanese and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at the G20 Summit, as well as "consistent advocacy" from the Albanese government, may have secured their return.

The five Bali Nine members remaining in jail could be back home in Australia by December, following "consistent advocacy" from the Albanese government.

"I can confirm the Albanese government has been consistently advocating for the cases of the Bali Nine and this included conversations with former president Widodo and President Prabowo," Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones said.

It's understood the federal government is waiting for the Indonesian government to make an official announcement before confirming details of the agreement.

If all goes to plan, they could be back on Australian soil before Christmas. It's expected they would serve out the rest of their sentences here.

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

Backlash swells as Myer protesters accused of ‘politicising Christmas’

Melbourne's Lord Mayor Nick Reece has joined the growing backlash against a planned protest which prompted Myer to cancel its traditional Christmas window opening reveal in Melbourne on Sunday.

Pro-Palestinian and anti-war activists on social media urged people to join them at a protest to "interrupt" the display reveal.

"Myer would like us to 'share the joy' this Christmas, but there is no joy in genocide," the original post by the protest organisers read.

READ MORE: Man charged after multi-vehicle crash split car in two in Sydney

Myer

"Christmas is cancelled, and there will be no joy or frivolity while children in Gaza are massacred."

In a statement, Myer confirmed the Sunday event had been cancelled.

"In light of recent developments and to ensure the wellbeing and safety of customers and team members, we will no longer hold an event on Bourke Street Mall for the unveiling of our Christmas windows," a spokesperson said.

READ MORE: 'World's worst super pests' detected in NSW after lawn turf delivery

Myer

"Myer's Christmas windows have long symbolised joy and community, and we remain committed to providing a safe and positive experience for all visitors."

Speaking to 3AW, Reece said he thought the planned protest was an "outrage".

"It's stupid, and it won't help the cause that these protesters are trying to advance," he said.

"(The windows) been going for over 70 years. It's part of the magic of childhood in Melbourne, going along to see the windows."

https://omny.fm/shows/3aw-breakfast-with-ross-and-john/lord-mayor-left-outraged-after-much-loved-christma/embed

State Premier Jacinta Allan, on X, fired a broadside earlier at the protesters earlier this morning, saying "we are all a bit sick of this stuff".

"Blocking the Christmas windows won't change a thing in the Middle East, but it will let down a bunch of kids in Melbourne. Who does that help?" she wrote.

"People have a right to demonstrate, no one has a right to divide.

"We cannot let ugly protests ruin a beautiful Christmas tradition, and we cannot let violence, division and vilification ruin what makes Victoria great."

https://twitter.com/JacintaAllanMP/status/1857161305993666914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Allan said the ongoing war in the Middle East had "tested" Victoria.

"We must come out of it united, not divided," she said.

She doubled down on her stance when speaking to the ABC, saying the protest was "not on".

"This is a really small group of people who are choosing to politicise Christmas, to politicise a beautiful event for our kids," she said.

The window display will still be open from Sunday until January 5 for people to enjoy if they choose to.

Victoria Police said they were aware of the planned protest.

"We have repeatedly requested they do not do this, however, the group is not co-operating with police," a spokesperson said.

"The Myer Christmas Windows are an important tradition in Melbourne's calendar, with families from across Victoria coming into the city to see them.

Myer

"While we always respect the right for people to protest peacefully, we are clear that this should be done without impacting the broader community."

The spokesperson said police would have a "visible presence" at the site on Sunday, and would continue to try speak with the group planning the protest.

"It is important to make clear a separate rally planned for later in the day has changed its usual route due to the Myer Christmas Windows and will not walk through Bourke Street," the spokesperson said.

In a further comment, police confirmed they had not advised Myer to cancel the event, and that they continued to work with the shopping centre to support the staging of the "much loved tradition".

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.