Wednesday's news
27 Mar 2013
Victoria Police linked to outlaw motorcycle gangs, Socceroos lose automatic qualifying spot, SA blaze burns overnight, Amanda Knox to face a new trial and calls for a coronial inquiry into asylum seeker deaths.
Victorian police linked to outlaw motorcycle gangs
Reports have emerged this morning that Victoria Police officers are being investigated for ties to the outlaw motorcycle gangs Comanchero and Bandidos.
Bandidos sergeant at arms Toby Mitchell has “cultivated a relationship with a Victorian police officer” according to the report in The Age, citing dozens of breaches of the police force’s criminal associations policy.
Read the full report in The Age, and find out more about how Victoria Police is working to protect its members from coercion by bikies on ABC News.
Guarantees gone but hopes alive
The Socceroos’ World Cup dreams are alive, but only just, after a draw with Oman in Sydney last night.
Oman posted the first points only six minutes into the game, with Australia’s efforts to level the score blocked for the following 40 minutes. With Jordan defeating Japan later in the night, Australia has now dropped out of the two automatic qualifying spots in their pool.
Amanda Knox trial
The Italian Supreme Court has overturned the acquittal of American student Amanda Knox, accused of killing her roommate Meredith Kercher in 2007.
Knox and her then-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were convicted of sexually assaulting and murdering Kercher, and spent four years in prison before their convictions were overturned.
Review the history of the Amanda Knox case and read more about this latest development.
Firefighters fighting SA blaze
A scrub fire in Murraylands, South Australia, had more than 250 firefighters working through the night.
Monarto Zoo has moved some animals and turned sprinklers on in the enclosures of others in an effort to keep animals safe, and firefighters have been positioned on the zoo’s northern perimetre.
“There are a number of road crossings we can attack this fire on before it reaches the zoo,” says Country Fire Service state coordinator Brenton Eden.
More than 1000 hectares have already burnt and temperatures are expected to rise before conditions ease later today.
Calls for coronial inquiry into asylum seeker deaths
A representative of the Refugee Action Coalition is calling for a coronial inquiry into the capsize of a boat carrying 96 asylum seekers near Christmas Island this week.
ABC News reports that the boat’s crew contacted Australian Maritime Safety Authority on Sunday night, saying they were lost. Border Protection Officers waited for dawn to break before boarding the vessel, during which time a woman and a young boy drowned when they were swept into the sea.
Read more comments from both sides of the debate on ABC News.
Share news from your club and keep up with news from Probus clubs around Australia on the Probus Facebook page.
®