FRANKSTON Embona Armed Robbery Squad detectives are seeking public help in finding the rightful owner of an axe allegedly used in violent robberies at two peninsula 7-Eleven service stations late last month. They believe the axe was stolen in a previous aggravated burglary and used to commit other offences. Finding its owner could help them in their inquiries, they say. The axe and a handgun were allegedly wielded by two balaclava-clad offenders arrested and charged with armed robbery and car theft last week over the raids which terrorised lone store attendants in the early hours of Wednesday 29 July. In…
Author: Stephen Taylor
“WOW, what a night. I can’t describe how amazing it felt last night making one of my dreams come true. A massive shout out to Emosi, a couple of great guys.” That’s how Bittern boxer Kane Watts told his Facebook followers after Friday night’s third round Australian title win over Emosi Solitua at the Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington. “Brian Amatruda, Julian Holland, Quincy Amatruda and Ray Giles – my team family – have been with me from the start and stood by me! “And thank you, too, to everyone that gets behind me and supports what I do; it’s much appreciated.…
PENINSULA Aero Club members are mourning the loss of a pilot who died Sunday when his twin-seater gyrocopter crashed at Cannons Creek. The name of the man, 59, of Patterson River, had not been released by police when The News went to press. Club president Peter Bernardi described the fully qualified pilot as “a gentleman” and said “the club’s thoughts are with his family”. He had been a member since 2011. The small craft went down into shallow water at Rutherford Inlet, between Warneet and Cannons Creek, just after midday. Witnesses reported the sound as “like a gunshot” and “like…
A FILM co-produced by Rosebud resident Gaye Miller and screening at the Southern Peninsula Arts Centre next week will be a reality check for some viewers. Camp 32 is a documentary about six-year-old Hom Chhorn who was imprisoned in a Cambodian labour camp by the Khmer Rouge where he witnessed the torture and brutality of the regime and the deaths of some of its 30,000 people. Hom was later sent with 150 children to live on a mountain for six months with no adult care or supervision. Few survived to come back down the mountain. Ms Miller has a strong…
A COMMEMORATIVE plaque awarded by Victoria Police to a Mt Martha man for helping with the 1988 Ty-Eyre Task Force was stolen in an overnight raid on Sunday 2 August. The task force had been set up to investigate the ambush and shooting deaths of Steven Tynan and Damian Eyre in South Yarra in October of that year – an investigation that, at its height, involved hundreds of officers. The 25cm plaque was one of many items stolen, including personal and business papers, bank PINs and statements, keepsakes including the man’s first tax return from 1950, cards and mementoes of…
IT’S unusual to associate young boys with taxidermy, but don’t tell Xavier Noonan. The Grade 6 Tyabb Primary School pupil is so enthused by his craft that he’s decorated the walls of his parents’ house with a stuffed rat, mice, birds of all sorts, fox, duck, and a deer’s head. “And we’ve got a lot of dead bodies in our freezer,” confided his mum, Kellie. At the tender age of 11, Xavier has been practising taxidermy for nearly two years. “He has been passionate about animals since he was little and was always very good at art,” Mrs Noonan said.…
ABOUT 50 Esso workers at the company’s Hastings plant at Long Island Point are taking industrial action in opposition to longer shifts, roster changes, and staff cuts. The workers are covered by an enterprise agreement covering Long Island Point, Longford, and the Barry Beach marine terminal. An Esso spokesperson on Monday said the longer working roster – 14 days on and 14 days off – “is actually for the workers at our offshore facilities – not Long Island Point”. “Under the most recent offer we made to the workforce the current seven day on seven day off roster was retained,…
Sorrento SES volunteers have attended three rescue jobs within 24 hours. In the first instance they were called to free a woman trapped in her car which had rolled onto its side in Mawarra St, Rosebud, 6.15pm, Tuesday. “We worked together with the fire crew and ambulance to safely extricate her,” media liaison officer David Lammers said. “All this only took 10 minutes and the woman was taken to hospital with what seemed like minor injuries.” At 4pm Wednesday they got a call to help out at Ocean Beach Rd, Sorrento, where another car had flipped onto its side and…
FRANKSTON Embona Armed Robbery Squad detectives on Friday arrested and charged five males allegedly involved in violent robberies at two southern peninsula 7-Eleven service stations in the early hours of Wednesday. Four juveniles were charged with armed robbery and other offences and remanded in custody to appear at a Melbourne Children’s Court later this week. The fifth, 18, was charged with armed robbery and remanded in custody to appear at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court later this week. Terrified attendants feared they could be killed in the 3.07am and 3.30am raids, which were both captured on CCTV footage. The two men were…
ROSEBUD West has again figured prominently in the Dropping off the Edge 2015 report on disadvantaged suburbs around Melbourne. The report – by Catholic Social Services Australia and Jesuit Social Services released last week – showed it held a “most disadvantaged” ranking – again. It was among the 27 state postcodes – or 4 per cent of the total – which account for 28.2 per cent of the highest ranking positions across 22 indicators of disadvantage. It is said to experience a “complex web of persistent and hard-to-shift disadvantage”. The disadvantaged suburbs – nicknamed “struggle towns” – have high rates…
MORNINGTON Yacht Club has delved into the past to begin celebrations for its 70th anniversary in February. In the search for historical information, it was fortunate in being able to locate several old salts who were sailing at the club from its inception in 1946 and well into the 1950s. The four enjoyed a lunch at the club last week – the first time they had got together in 50 years. It was described as an intriguing time for the sailors who were obviously excited at meeting old sailing friends, having a chat, a laugh, and recollecting many old sailing…
A MORNINGTON man has been charged with five counts of arson and one count of conduct endangering life after a house fire and fires in three lots of rubbish bins. The man, 38, is alleged to have set fire to a house in Moorina Court, Mornington, as well as bins outside the Currawong Community Centre, in Gilga St, Mornington and at Officeworks at the Peninsula Homemaker Centre. A man and a woman managed to escape from the house fire and their children were staying overnight elsewhere. However, one of the family’s two pet dogs died in the blaze. The man…
PENINSULA Skin Cancer Centre’s Dr Sally Shaw is worked up about what she calls “the misrepresentation of melanoma in the news”, especially regarding the recent return to football of Hawthorn forward Jarryd Roughead. “Melanoma is not a cancer scare, it’s a cancer reality, and Roughead continues to be at high risk of advanced melanoma,” she said. “The term cancer scare should be reserved for when a mole is thought to be melanoma but comes back benign. “Having prominent sportsmen as Roughead, Jack Riewoldt, Tom Hafey and Jim Stynes all diagnosed with melanoma, yet having their conditions reported in the media…
AUSTRALIAN of the Year Rosie Batty was guest speaker at the opening of the Clothes4U boutique in Nepean Highway, Rosebud, Tuesday 21 July. The campaigner against domestic violence towards women and children described the service as a perfect add-on between those needing help and welfare agencies. She said she wished it had been around when she was struggling with a young family and limited resources. Now she planned to bring in her own unused clothes to donate to the needy. The not-for profit boutique is run by women volunteers who provide clothing to those in need to give them confidence…
FUNDING cuts to emergency relief services have hit the Mornington Peninsula region hard. Managers of community support and information centres say they are struggling to provide for the increasing food, clothing and welfare demands across the peninsula. Rosebud, Hastings and Mornington support and information centres are usually the first point of contact for those in dire need in the local community. They provide food vouchers, food parcels, assist with payments, provide advocacy and budgeting assistance and, generally, work in the best interests of those struggling. But the welfare services are reeling from Department of Social Services funding cuts which stripped…
A SURVEY of peninsula horse owners has found that 100, picked at random, own 320 horses between them. They told the Mornington Peninsula Horse Owners Association that they collectively spent about $12,800 a week on their horses – or a staggering $665,000 a year. “Multiply that number of owners by 10 – which would probably well understate the correct number of peninsula horse owners – and suddenly there are 3200 horses and expenditure becomes a very meaningful $6.65 million going into the local economy annually,” peninsula horse enthusiast Geraldine Chapman said. She thinks the real figure may be higher. Ms…
THE shooting death of a prized retired racehorse in Myers Rd, Balnarring, early Saturday morning has “devastated” its owners and sent shockwaves through Mornington Peninsula’s racing community. Police and the mare’s owner are puzzled by the killing, but have not ruled out it being “industry based” or a case of mistaken identity. Stud farm owner Tony Biddle said the 14-year-old brood mare Arriere was “shot between the eyes” by a high powered rifle from about six metres away early Saturday morning. Mr Biddle said on Monday he heard the shot at about 1.30am but did not realise its significance. He…
ARGUMENTS over the dismantling of a timber retaining wall and removal of vegetation along a quiet Mt Martha street has resulted in a family feeling “vilified” by shire officers who are “rude, hostile, incompetent and unwilling to admit their mistakes”. The 1.7 metre wall was a sticking point between neighbours who claimed it stopped them from using a road reserve in Potts Lane and Grandview Terrace. Mornington Peninsula Shire last week replaced the wall with a row of bollards, stating it “was inappropriately constructed within the road reserve which is not acceptable to the shire”. However, property owners Karen Williams…
FLINDERS MP and Environment Minister Greg Hunt is scheduled to begin his fourth 500 kilometre walk around his electorate next week – this time hoping to raise at least $25,000 for autism research. Although he’ll be out of his office for nearly three weeks, any urgent business from Canberra or affecting Australia’s environment will be handled by Mr Hunt while he is on the road. His first 500km sponsored electorate walk in 2004 raised $65,000 for diabetes research, a second walk for diabetes in 2007 raised $55,000 and his third third walk in 2011 raised $35,864 for the Abacus Learning…
STORIES of refugee courage and perseverance are often downplayed in the current political climate. Too often refugees and asylum seekers are dubbed as “queue jumpers” or brazen economic refugees simply looking for the best place to stash their cash. But cases of real hardship and persecution are not hard to find. Abdi Aden’s world fell apart when, at 13, Somalia’s vicious civil war hit Mogadishu. Separated from his family and effectively an orphan, he survived daily violence, death squads and starvation. Bravely, he set off in a group for Kenya but, of the 300 who left with him, only five…
LIFE should return to normal in Mt Martha after the shire confirmed in writing that it would remove a wall blocking access to a road reserve by today (Tuesday). The 1.7 metre structure blocks pedestrian access between Potts Lane and Grandview Terrace. It was erected in December by an adjoining property owner without council permission and has caused angst between neighbours. John and Carole Van Der Helm, of Potts Lane, organised a petition opposing the wall with 50 signatures and presented it to the shire earlier this month. They were frustrated with the length of time the shire was taking…
TYABB horse breeder Peter Moran spends much of each week flying around the country picking up patients and taking them to Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide hospitals. He’s part of Angel Flight, which offers flight services to the sick and injured living in regional areas. He and his team provide a fast, free and safe service to those requiring medical treatment. Under the scheme, pilots donate their time and aircraft to transport outlying patients into the city for care, saving them long road trips that would be beyond their physical capabilities, especially if recovering from the effects of chemo and radiation…
A “GHOST” bike has been erected in memory of cyclist Joel Hawkins, 17, who died last week after being knocked down by a car in Dromana on 17 June. The white bike is at the site of the accident on the corner of Nepean Hwy and Ponderosa Place, Dromana. The keen Mt Martha cyclist was flown to the Alfred Hospital where he remained on life support until early last week. Friends placed the white-painted bike at the crash site in memory of the Dromana College student. In an online tribute Mornington Cycling Club offered “its deepest condolences to the family…
A GROUP of young people from Mornington Rotary Club have successfully pushed a Bill through the YMCA Victorian Youth Parliament to make it law for supermarkets to donate all edible, unsold food, to those in need. The group included Lucy Martin, Heap Do, Lydia Edwards and Kate Purcell. Their Bill will now be forwarded to Consumer Affairs Minister Jane Garrett and, they hope, pass through State Parliament to become law. This follows similar legislation introduced in France ruling that all unsold, edible food from supermarkets, be donated to charities or for animal feed. That legislation has garnered significant global support.…
A BATTLE is raging in Mt Martha over a retaining wall that blocks access to a road reserve. The wall was erected in December between Potts Lane and Grandview Terrace. The News was unable to contact the owner of the property last week. John and Carole Van Der Helm, of Potts Lane, say the wall should be removed and have organised a petition to present to Mornington Peninsula Shire. Last week it had 50 signatures. The petition says: “We, the undersigned, request the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council to remove the retaining wall … which blocks the road reserve between Potts…
AGGRESSIVE and threatening behaviour by out-of-control children is upsetting members of University of the Third Age at Currawong Community Centre in Mornington. The boys – aged 10 to 12 – reportedly bang on doors and windows while U3A members are inside attending classes, ride their bikes threateningly at elderly members, turn off the power, and harass members walking to their cars. U3A Mornington president Tom Jeavons took photographs of damage to trees at the rear of the centre he said was caused by the boys. “One of our members saw two boys aged 10 or 11 behind the portable building…
AN online petition has been launched against proposed retirement village at Somerville even though it has been knocked back by Mornington Peninsula Shire. The proposed development, at 16 Graf Rd and Beaconsfield Court, Somerville, is a 223-unit facility of two and three storeys in 11 separate buildings. The planning knock back was described by petition organisers as a “good result for the Somerville community in general”. But with the possibility that the applicant will appeal, organisers say there is a need to keep the petition going. Organiser Lyn Cleary said more signatures were needed “to back our council if this…
PENINSULA Aero Club members are flying high with news they have been given $50,000 for a new access road off Stuart Rd. The grant was confirmed in the Mornington Peninsula Shire budget on Wednesday night. Vice-president Jack Vevers said the club would match the grant to build a $100,000 single lane road with a turning circle. “It will offer a safer and more efficient access point to the airfield to refurbish aircraft with water and fuel in emergencies, and assist with patient transfers,” Mr Vevers said. The club will spend another $200,000 building a dual use hangar for use by…
MORNINGTON Botanical Rose Gardens’ volunteers can take a bow. Their efforts have been acknowledged by an Award of Garden Excellence from judges at the 17th World Rose Convention in Lyon, France. The 39 members of the World Federation of Rose Societies have confirmed that, while there are many wonderful rose gardens around the world, some are truly exceptional from a historical, educational and/or visual point of view. One of them is at Mornington. From 1995, the World Federation of Rose Societies has recognised the best of these outstanding rose gardens for the award. Of the three recipients in Australia all…
A YOUNG girl who suggested her family help raise money for victims of the Nepalese earthquake is thrilled with the result. Isabelle Stanley, 7, was “overwhelmed” by the $175 earned selling knitted scarves, mittens and beanies at Saturday’s Hastings Community Art and Craft Market. Her mum, Kerry Sorenson, had earlier knitted herself and Isabelle matching scarves when her daughter, who attends Crib Point Primary School, said to her: “Let’s knit some more, sell them, and send the money to Nepal.” The idea escalated and with help from family, friends, and knitters from local churches, about 70 scarves of all colours,…