Author: MP News Group

Police are appealing for public assistance to help locate missing Burwood teen Jacob Fowlds. Jacobs was last seen at a property in Burwood on 20 April and it is not known where he was headed. Jacob is known to frequent the Croydon, Hastings and Doveton areas. Police are concerned for the 14-year-old’s welfare given his young age. Jacob is described as being perceived to be of Caucasian appearance, 160cm tall with a thin build and light brown short hair. He was last seen wearing a red hooded jumper, black jeans and a black cap. Police have released an image of…

Frankston Crime Investigation Unit detectives are investigating the theft of property at a local basketball match on 8 April. It’s believed a woman attended the hall on Warrandyte Road, Langwarrin around 7.30pm while it was being used for competition basketball. The woman accessed a room where officials keep their belongings and stole a handbag and two mobile phones. It is believed the woman arrived and left the area in a grey Ford Territory. Some of the stolen property was located in the carpark of a fast food restaurant on Lee Street, Frankston later that night. Investigators have released images of…

Frankston Crime Investigation Unit detectives are investigating after a large amount of cigarettes were stolen from a Karingal tobacco store on Anzac Day. Four men have forced open a roller door to a store at the Ashleigh Avenue Shopping Centre using a jemmy bar about 3.05am. They obviously hadn’t done their research, as they soon realised they had broken into the wrong store and left without taking anything. The bumbling thieves had better luck on their second attempt and forced entry to the roller door of the tobacco store and left with a doona cover filled with a large number…

A man has been charged with an assortment of offences following the execution of a search warrant in Carrum Downs yesterday morning. More than 300 grams of methamphetamine, a conducted energy device, more than $15,000 in cash and small amounts of other drugs suspected to be cocaine, heroin and cannabis were allegedly found at the Hillview Drive house. A brand new Holden SSV utility was also seized as part of the operation and it will be alleged to have been obtained by proceeds of crime. Yesterday evening, 25-year-old Domenic Quadara was charged with trafficking a commercial quantity of methamphetamine, traffick…

Carrum Downs uniform members will be forced to make room in the property office after executing a search warrant in Carrum Downs late this morning. More than 300 grams of methamphetamine, a conducted energy device, more than $15,000 and small amounts of other drugs suspected to be cocaine, heroin and cannabis were allegedly found at the Hillview Drive house. A brand new Holden SSV utility was also seized as part of the operation and it will be alleged to have been obtained by proceeds of crime. A 24-year-old Carrum Downs man was arrested at the address and he is currently…

HASTINGS Football Club recently established their Hall of Fame with the induction of ten men who have been star players and administrators over the past 100 years. Some of these inductees have passed on, and their awards were received on their behalf by family members. Richard Francis was one such recipient who stood out from the rest because he accepted TWO awards – one for his father and one for his grandfather. Richard was a Hastings team-mate of mine in the 60’s and, although I knew his father from those days, it was his grandfather, Bert Francis, who held the…

HASTINGS FNC by Phil Stone, club president SENIORS REPORT IT was a good weekend for the Hastings Football/Netball club. We showed each other a new side of ourselves that we haven’t seen, and that is grit and determination. It was a cold windy day and for the most part dry but rain at times. I feel that we played good football at times but we were a little too unaccountable for our men too and the Bombers made the most of this. We had our chances and were the best side on the day for sure but not converting really…

A search is underway for a 48-year-old Frankston North woman who has been missing for two weeks. Karen Rae has not been seen since leaving her home address in Adib Court on Wednesday 15 April about 7pm. Investigators have been told that Karen left home in the company of a man named Tony Smith. Police believe the pair drove away from Karen’s home in a black Commodore station wagon. Karen has not made contact with any of her friends or family since that time. Investigators have released an image of Karen in the hope that someone may have information on…

In just four weeks’ time Mornington will come alive with the sights and sounds of the Queen’s Birthday Weekend Mornington Winter Jazz Festival from 5th – 8th June. Now in its third year the festival has grown to include even more live performances with free and low cost activities the whole family can enjoy. This year’s dynamic jazz program offers a wide range of jazz performances with styles and sounds to suit everyone. Kicking off the festival on Friday 5th June is a new addition to the program, a dinner performance by Latin Jazz Ensemble Clave Mania at Biscottini Mornington.…

MT MARTHA surfer Arturo Tallarida rode his way to third place in quality surf for the first round of the state longboard titles at Point Impossible, near Torquay. The 2-3 foot reef break suited Tallarida, who was one of the few east coast surfers to make any sort of mark in the round which was dominated by west coast surfers. Tallarida came third in the open men’s and open logger sections. Other Mornington Peninsula surfers to secure a foothold in the round were Craig Burton, St Andrews Beach, Tomaso Bellasai, Mornington, and Benjamin Pitts, Mt Martha, who came second, third…

FIVE men have been charged with various drug offences after three different cars were pulled over by police in the same Rosebud street in one week. Two of the drug busts involved ice and one cannabis growing in a pot on a car’s back seat. In one case an alleged 23-year-old drug dealer was arrested and charged and held in custody. Two days later a second man, 46, was arrested and charged with similar offences but bailed to appear in September. In the first incident on Sunday 5 April police from Rosebud spotted a potted cannabis plant on the back…

Police were at the scene of a car crash in Mornington that has claimed the life of a woman this morning. It’s believed a vehicle was travelling south along the Moorooduc Highway when the driver lost control on a bend and crashed into a tree in the centre medium strip about 11.30am. The male driver was taken to The Alfred by ambulance with non-life threatening injuries. A female passenger, aged in her 80s, died at the scene and is yet to be formally identified. A male passenger, aged in his 90s, was airlifted to The Alfred with critical injuries. Anyone with information is…

THE scenic possibilities are endless and the choice of “natural landscape” entirely up to the photographer for a competition being run to show the best views of Mt Martha. Creators of the 13 top shots chosen for a 2016 calendar being planned by Mt Martha Community Bank will all receive a monetary prize (conveniently paid into a Bendigo Bank deposit account) ranging from $200 for the overall winner, $100 for the best junior entry and $50 for the remaining 11. Photographers must focus their lenses on the area bounded by the coast from Martha Cove to Bentons Rd and across…

A man has died after being hit by a car in Dromana last night. Police have been told the man stepped onto the outside north bound lane of the Peninsula Freeway just before 8.50pm. He was struck by a Toyota Corolla, before being struck by at least one other vehicle. The man died at the scene. A 41-year-old Mornington woman is currently assisting police with their enquiries. Anyone with any information about the collision is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report at crimestoppersvic.com.au

THE Mornington Peninsula Tennis International at the Civic Reserve, Mornington, was a big success. Held from 21 March-5 April the tournament included the women’s US$15,000 ITF Futures event and the men’s US$15,000 ITF Challenger event. The men’s winner was Jose Statham, a member of the New Zealand Davis Cup Team, who beat fifth seed Matthew Barton, of NSW, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. This is Statham’s first singles victory since May 2013. He ended Barton’s 17-consecutive-match-winning streak – a run that included two previous titles. Barton also fell just short in the men’s doubles final with partner Peter Torebko, of Germany. They…

JUST as he is every Anzac Day, Constable Steven Newland will be at the Frankston Dawn Service with his dad, brother and three uncles. They go to pay their respects to those who died in World War One – but this year the service has extra meaning for them. In October, Constable Newland was told by Victoria Police’s Historical Services that his great grandmother’s uncle, Sergeant Herbert Leslie Newland, was one of 138 Victoria Police officers who served in the war. Sergeant Newland, who joined in 1912, was among the troops who left Melbourne in the first convoy in late…

TWO outbuildings at Portsea’s Police Point Park are being restored as part of the shire’s heritage conservation works. The work is being done by Woodworkers of the Southern Peninsula, a not-for-profit club in Boneo Rd, Boneo. Police Point Shire Park was created in 2004 when the federal government gave the shire 17.5 hectares at the entrance of Point Nepean. The park was the original boundary and entry to the Quarantine Station, and later used by the Department of Defence. Of the six cottages, four will be used as respite accommodation for carers and their families, and two for a range…

“WHY are we only now talking about family violence?” That’s the question put by Australian of the Year Rosie Batty to the VIEW Club’s International Women’s Day Lunch last month. Hastings and Mornington women were among the 170 VIEW club members at the event at Amstel Golf Course, Cranbourne. Ms Batty, whose son Luke was killed by his father Greg last year, said family violence “has gone on forever, but has always been hidden behind closed doors”. “Now is the time to bring that hidden truth into the open,” she said. “We are constantly being bombarded with statistics on traffic…

SAFETY Beach resident Phyllis Maggs was at the Brotherhood of St Laurence’s monthly lunch at Rosebud Hotel last Thursday but it was a special day – a celebration of her 100th birthday, which was last Sunday. Phyllis was born in Ascot Vale on 5 April 1915. She married in 1939 and she and her husband, a compositor at The Argus, had three children. After her children were launched, Phyllis ran a Melbourne timber business that saw her make regular trips to Tasmania to pick out timber. She later went into partnership with a friend and ran a pineapple plantation, Phyllis making…

THE RSL is launching a campaign this month to raise money for a rotunda at a new avenue of honour in Mornington Park. The rotunda will be furnished with bronze plaques giving information about avenues of honour in general and Mornington’s in particular. These are being funded by the federal government’s Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program. The rotunda will in the same place as the park’s original rotunda – a familiar feature to the young men going off to war 100 years ago. The completion date, including painting and landscaping, is expected to be this October – in time for…

THE Langwarrin-based Ahmadiyya Muslim Association Victoria has been credited as providing the third highest number of volunteers at this year’s Clean Up Australia Day. On Sunday 1 March more than 200 volunteers from association helped collect rubbish at selected sites in Langwarrin, Dandenong and Werribee South. At Langwarrin, above, the clean-up began at the association’s mosque, Bait-ul-Salam (House of Peace), with a recitation from the Quran and its English translation. Imam Janud said Ahmadi Muslims volunteered “very enthusiastically” because cleaning up was “a part of our faith” and Muhammad had proclaimed “cleanliness is half of your faith”. “Secondly, we are…

Frankston Crime Investigation Unit detectives are appealing for public assistance to help identify a burglar who stole a safe from a Frankston shopping centre last week. The burglary took place at the Cranbourne Road shopping centre on Saturday 7 February at 9.30pm. The burglar approached a pop up sushi shop, which was closed at the time, and crawled under a tarpaulin to access a safe. The man removed the safe from the shop and walked from the centre. Frankston Crime Investigation Unit Detective Senior Constable Jason Hamilton-Smith said that the man was wearing fairly distinctive clothing that someone may recognise.…

A HASTINGS musician is heading to Gallipoli to play The Last Post on the 100th anniversary of the Anzac landings. Able seaman and bugler, Racheal Byrnes, of HMAS Cerberus, is part of a musical group playing aboard the frigate HMAS Anzac when it anchors in Anzac Cove on 25 April. A ceremonial service on board will complement the three Australian and New Zealand commemorative services at Gallipoli: a joint Dawn Service at the Anzac Commemorative Site, an Australian Memorial Service at Lone Pine, and a New Zealand Memorial Service at Chunuk Bair. Ms Byrnes left on Thursday for a week’s…

THE remains of what is thought to be the bodies of two men missing off the coast of Cape Schanck were found today. The 42-year-old St Albans man and a 34-year-old Vermont South man were diving for shellfish off the rocks north of the cape at Fingal beach when they got into trouble about 8am on Saturday. A third man, a 50-year-old from Keysborough, managed to get to shore and raise the alarm. He reported that his two friends were unable to get out of the water and were clinging to a rock and getting smashed by waves. Sorrento SES’s…

FRANK Yamma and former Killing Heidi singer Ella Hooper will perform later this month at the second Baany to Warrna Ngargee – Water to Water Festival at The Briars, Mt Martha. Yamma, who sings in English and Pitjantjatjara, has toured Australia and overseas. Hooper, a singer-songwriter, radio presenter and TV personality, won four ARIA awards in 2000 as a member of Killing Heidi. Yirrmal and the Yolngu Boys will return to The Briars to join musicians, dancers and artists during Cultural Diversity Week, Harmony Day and the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Mornington Peninsula resident…

The search continues for two missing men off the coast of Cape Schanck, although police sources are now saying it is now a recover rather than a rescue. It’s believed three men were diving for shell fish near rocks off Fingal Beach when they got into trouble about 8am. A 50-year-old Keysborough man managed to get to shore and raise the alarm. A 42-year-old St Albans man and a 34-year-old Vermont South man are still missing. Water Police are being assisted by Air Wing, SES, Parks Victoria, Lifesaving Victoria, Ambulance Victoria and local marine volunteer groups. Anyone with any information…

Water Police members are currently searching for two men missing in waters near Cape Schanck. It’s believed three men may have been snorkelling or fishing at Fingal Beach north of Cape Schanck when two of the men got into trouble just before 8am. The other man managed to get back to shore and call police. Search and Rescue, Air Wing, Surf Lifesaving, volunteer marine rescue units and local police are all assisting with the search. Anyone with any information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au

Police are appealing for public information to help locate a teenage girl who went missing in Frankston last month. Aleesha Kete left her home address in Muruwa Street on 27 February and said she was going to the city to visit friends. The 13-year-old told her family she would return on Saturday night but has not been seen since. Police have concerns for her welfare due to her age. Aleesha is described as being of Maori appearance, with a slim build, an olive complexion, long wavy hair that is currently coloured pink and brown eyes. It’s unknown what the teenager…

Police are searching for a driver who they believe may have witnessed this morning’s collision between a truck and cyclist at Mornington. It is believed a concrete truck was travelling north-west on Beleura Hill Road when it collided with a cyclist travelling in the opposite direction around 6.45am. The cyclist, a 34-year-old Mt Eliza man, was hit by the truck and knocked from his bike. He was airlifted to The Alfred hospital suffering life threatening injuries. The 57-year-old male truck driver from Woodleigh Vale has been interviewed and released pending further enquiries. Detectives from the Major Collision Investigation Unit are…