An Adelaide police officer has been stabbed in the hand while making an arrest in the city’s west, according to SA Police.
Key points:
Police were called when two men were seen acting suspiciously around homes and cars at about 2am
One of the men was tracked down after fleeing on a mini dirt bike in Adelaide’s west
A police officer was allegedly stabbed in the hand during the arrest
Patrols were called to Arnold Close in Findon just before 2am today, after reports of two men acting suspiciously, trying door handles on cars and a home.
One man sped off on a mini dirt bike but was later seen by a police dog and his handler nearby.
When the suspect was confronted, he produced a screwdriver and allegedly attacked the officer, stabbing him in the hand and trying to also stab the dog.
Back-up was called and the man was arrested.
The accused man is taken by ambulance to hospital with dog bite wounds.(abcnews)
Senior Constable Rebecca Stokes said the officer was treated by paramedics at the scene.
“We’re still waiting to hear an update on how serious the injury to his hand is,” she said.
The dog’s stab-resistant harness prevented it from being injured.
A 27-year-old Findon man was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital to be treated for dog bite wounds and is expected to be charged later this morning.
When Jasmin Witham started renting in Adelaide, she was forced to make a heartbreaking decision.
Key points:
In South Australia, landlords can deny pets in their rental properties.
The SA government is looking at strengthening laws to allow tenants to have pets
Victoria, Queensland and ACT have strong renter rights regarding pets
In order to move into her new home in Clovelly Park, the 27-year-old would have to give up her kitten, Nina.
Even though more than 60 per cent of South Australian households own a dog or cat, the decision to allow pets in rental properties lies with the landlord.
Property owners can currently refuse tenants’ requests to own a pet and do not have to provide a reason for doing so.
As a result, Ms Witham, who has struggled with rental affordability over the years as a part-time student who lives with bipolar disorder and is on the Disability Support Pension, said she was faced with a difficult choice.
“We approached the landlord and asked to bring the pet with us and they said no, so I wasn’t able to bring my kitten with me to the new house,” Ms Witham said.
“It is still very upsetting, and I don’t see how having a pet or a smaller animal like a cat is detrimental in any way to a property, like if there is any damage there is a bond.”
Nina the cat went to live with Jasmin’s parents instead.(ABC News: Che Chorley)
The South Australian government is currently looking at modernizing the state’s residential tenancies laws which could see tenants allowed to rent with pets.
In 2020, new laws came into effect in Victoria which made it much easier for renters to own a pet.
Now landlords are only allowed to deny a tenant’s request for a pet if they receive approval from the Victorian Civil and Administration Tribunal.
Queensland followed in 2021 by updating its legislation and stripping landlords of the right to refuse pets in rental properties without a reason deemed valid by the state government.
In the ACT, tenants still require consent of the landlord to keep a pet on the property but tenancy agreements can no longer prohibit pets completely.
If the landlord wants to refuse a pet, they have to take it to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Shelter SA executive director Alice Clark said the current legislation in place in South Australia is outdated.
“The number of pet rentals that is listed is very low in South Australia so yes I think we should catch up,” Dr Clark said.
“What we don’t want is tenants hiding their pets which we know happens frequently so it would be great to have that all done transparently and responsibly by both sides.”
Jasmin Witham is currently renting in Unley.(ABC News: Che Chorley)
Considering what she could afford, Ms Witham said finding a rental by herself was difficult and even finding a share house was hard.
“It’s difficult to be put onto a lease where a lot of landlords and agencies feel uncomfortable taking people getting social security benefits and will prioritize people in employment,” she said.
As Australia’s housing crisis worsens, Ms Witham hopes South Australia updates its laws to better protect both tenants and landlords.
An Adelaide man, 68, who remotely instructed and recorded the sexual abuse of children on 55 occasions over webcam has been sentenced to 15 years in jail.
The investigation led to the rescue of 15 victims in the Philippines and the arrests of five women accused of facilitating the “horrific” abuse, some of whom are the mothers and relatives of the victims.
The predator had pleaded guilty in February 2021 to 50 offenses between March 2018 and January 2020, but was charged with further offenses as investigations uncovered more information.
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Police believe the youngest child was aged just three when they were first abused.
Thirteen children and two young adults were removed from harm in the Philippines following a major investigation by Australian Federal Police (AFP), Australian Border Force, SA Police, Anti-Child Exploitation teams, and multiple agency partners in the Philippines.
AFP Commander Erica Merrin said: “Children are being forced into the most appalling violence and torment on camera by the people who are meant to love and to protect them.
“The abuse is then live-streamed to customers in Western nations, shamefully that includes Australia.
“This Adelaide man did not just watch children being hurt – he ordered specific abuse to happen and preyed on the economic vulnerability of the people involved.”
The five alleged facilitators were aged between 18 and 29 at the time.
One of the 15 young victims being rescued by Philippine authorities. Credit: AFPOne of the alleged offenders of the ongoing child sex abuse hides her face inside a premises in the Philippines before her arrest. Credit: AFP
“One of the women charged was then an 18-year-old who was allegedly offering three girls online to offenders – her nine-year-old niece, 12-year-old cousin and 18-year-old best friend,” the AFP said.
The Adelaide man was first caught at Melbourne Airport with child abuse material on his mobile phone by Australian Border Force officials as he returned to Australia on an international flight in February 2020.
A forensic examination of the man’s digital storage devices “uncovered horrific footage of sexual acts involving children”, and police found more than 55,000 images and videos of child abuse material.
The man was charged over the illegal content.
Five alleged female facilitators of exploitation and child sex abuse were arrested by Philippines authorities. Credit: AFP
Further investigation found that the man “communicated with adult ‘facilitators’ in the Philippines to procure several children for his depraved requests,” AFP said.
“The children were forced to perform sexually explicit acts on camera which he watched live from his suburban Adelaide home. “
He was charged with the additional offenses in April 2020.
In November 2020 and May 2021, the AFP obtained a restraining order in relation to the property where many of his internet-based offenses allegedly took place.
The case served as the first example where an AFP taskforce had sought to confiscate the home of a person charged with sex offences. Credit: AFP
He was ordered to pay a total of $165,000, half of what his home was worth. This was the first time the AFP-led Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT) had sought to confiscate the home of a person charged with sex offences.
This is because he was allegedly using his property as “an instrument of crime”.
The AFP worked with its partner agencies in the Philippines, including the Philippine Internet Crimes Against Children Center (PICACC), to continue the investigation there.
Philippines authorities executed search warrants at multiple locations in Bislig City, a remote area in the country’s east, in August 2020.
“The rescues and arrests are a powerful reminder of why the AFP works closely with partners around the globe, sharing intelligence and the resources necessary to target anyone who preys on children, no matter where in the world they are hiding,” AFP International Command Detective Superintendent Andrew Perkins said.
The Adelaide man has been sentenced to a total of 15 years, three months and 19 days’ imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 10 years, for the commonwealth offences, as well as nine months for a state offence. They will be served cumulatively.
A woman who fatally injured a pedestrian with her car in the Adelaide Hills later told police she had drunk two sixpacks of beer before getting behind the wheel.
Key points:
Lisa Trewren hit and killed pedestrian David Hoy on Mount Barker Road
The judge said she was cowardly in trying to dissuade a passenger from calling police
She will spend time in jail and be banned from driving for 15 years
Lisa Marie Trewren, 39, was sentenced today to eight years in prison for the death of 31-year-old David Hoy at Totness on December 20 last year.
Mr Hoy – who was also known as Amy – had been collecting cans on the side of Mount Barker Road that night when Trewren lost control of her car and struck him, causing fatal injuries.
The District Court heard she had earlier driven from Murray Bridge to her ex-partner’s house at Hahndorf.
David Hoy collected cans and bottles for money and to keep the streets clean. (Facebook)
The man told police they drove to a beach where Trewren stayed in the car drinking beer to the point of vomiting.
The court heard on the return to Hahndorf, Trewren insisted on going back to Murray Bridge, ignoring warnings from her former partner not to drive, a decision the sentencing judge called “astonishing”.
“By your selfish and totally irresponsible and drunken action that night you would take the life of another person,” Judge Paul Muscat said.
Immediately after fatally injuring Mr Hoy, a passenger in Trewren’s car rang police, prompting threats from Trewren that were recorded by the police operator.
“That you later attempted to dissuade [the passenger] from calling the authorities was not only totally unacceptable but selfish and cowardly behaviour,” Judge Muscat said.
Trewren was already disqualified from driving for a drink-driving charge in May last year.
Trewren’s car after the crash on Mount Barker Road at Totness.(abcnews)
In sentencing, Judge Muscat acknowledged Trewren’s problems with mental health, which deteriorated after her mother died in 2019 and contributed to her drinking as well as her remorse and early guilty plea.
But he said her actions carried a high level of moral culpability.
Trewren’s sentence was discounted by 25 per cent for an early guilty plea.
She must serve four years and nine months before being eligible for parole and is banned from driving for 15 years upon release.
A retired public servant has been sentenced to up to 16 years in jail for sexually exploiting children in the Philippines, with police saying his victims will never get back their “stolen childhoods”.
Key points:
Ian Schapel paid girls in the Philippines to perform sexual acts for him online
He was arrested after a routine search of his devices when he came back from overseas
His sentences on separate charges total 16 years
WARNING: This story contains content that readers may find upsetting.
Ian Ralph Schapel, 68, spent 13 years between 2007 and 2020 committing sexual offenses online, often while traveling in countries including America, Singapore and Vietnam.
He had pleaded guilty to 50 offences, including 41 counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child outside of Australia, using a carriage service to access child exploitation material and possessing child exploitation material.
On 74 occasions he engaged in sexual activity with at least 13 children in the Philippines over online platforms including Skype and WhatsApp.
The female victims were aged between three and nine.
Schapel also had more than 52,000 images and videos of child exploitation material in his possession.
Commonwealth prosecutor Krista Breckweg had told the court earlier that he would threaten facilitators or parents of his victims that if they did not meet his requests they would starve.
One of the victims is taken away by Filipino police after the facilitators were arrested.(Supplied: Australian Federal Police)
Australian Federal Police Detective Inspector Rodger Braun said five alleged abuse facilitators were arrested in the Philippines and 15 victims were rescued.
“We cannot give these children back their stolen childhoods, however we hope a conviction of this Adelaide man provides reassurance that the AFP and partner agencies will never stop our fight to bring predators to justice and protect children,” he said.
“Child sex offenders are not restricted by national or international borders, but neither are law enforcement agencies.
“We are united in our commitment to keep children safe.
“I’d also like to issue a warning to any individual who would seek to prey on children: the AFP and its partners will come for you no matter when the abuse occurred and no matter where you are in the world, there is nowhere for you to hide.”
‘Lonely man’ with mental health conditions
District Court Judge Paul Cuthbertson outlined payments for many of the sexual acts for sums of less than $40 on each occasion.
In sentencing, he took into account several factors, including his lonely life, being bullied at school and never being married or in long relationships with women.
There were also diagnoses of several mental health conditions, including schizoid personality disorder, hoarding disorder and adjustment disorder with depression.
But that did not lessen the seriousness of the charges, Judge Cuthbertson said.
“He must have known the consequences of his offending, the seriousness involved and he must have been aware that the financial position of those people would have driven parents and carers to proffer their children as a means to alleviate their economic plight,” he said.
Filipino police with one of the victims (in background) and one of the accused facilitators (foreground in pink).(Supplied: Australian Federal Police)
Material found during routine search
Schapel had flown back into Melbourne in February 2020 from an overseas trip when Australian Border Force officers conducted a routine search of his electronic devices and found child abuse material on his iPhone and iPads.
Released on bail, he went home to Adelaide, but was met at his home by officers from the SA Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team, who found numerous child abuse material inside the property.
A 17-year sentence for Commonwealth offenses was reduced due to his early guilty plea and assistance to authorities. He will now serve 15 years and three months, with a non-parole period of 10 years.
He received another nine-month sentence on state charges, bringing the total to 16 years.
A former South Australian coroner and District Court judge and will be sentenced later this month for seriously injuring a delivery driver during a crash in Adelaide late last year.
Key points:
Wayne Chivell was a magistrate, coroner and judge
I used the accelerator instead of the brake and hit an OzHarvest driver
The man lost his legs below the knees as a result of the crash
Wayne Cromwell Chivell, 71, pleaded guilty in the Adelaide Magistrates Court to careless driving on Anzac Highway at Plympton in December 2021.
The court heard that Chivell stopped to inform an OzHarvest delivery driver that his back door was swinging open before getting back in his car.
His lawyer said he intended to put his foot on the brake but accidentally accelerated and hit the 66-year-old driver, who lost both his legs below the knees because of the crash.
Chivell issued a public apology in court and was provided character references by judges Paul Slattery and Trish Kelly, who described how devastated their former colleague was for injuring the driver.
Chivell was a magistrate for seven years in the 1980s before becoming the state coroner in 1993 and sitting on the District Court bench from 2005.
I have retired in 2020 at the mandatory age of 70.
In 2011, during the sentencing of a driver who had hit and killed a boy, Chivell pointed out that “even momentary lapses in concentration can have tragic consequences.”
“We need to make people stop and think twice before they jump behind that wheel,” he said.
In 2012, he spared a driver jail in a case he said showed the terrible consequences that could follow from inattentive driving.
As the coroner, he said a complacent attitude to safety led to the death of a yachtsman off Adelaide in 2002.
The case of the Somerton Man has baffled detectives and amateur sleuths for decades.
Now it’s your chance to ask the experts just how one of Australia’s most enduring mysteries has been solved — and why the story has attracted so much attention.
University of Adelaide professor Derek Abbottwho spent decades researching the case and helped to uncover the man’s identity, will join us from 12pm (AEST) to tackle all your curly questions.
Colleen Fitzpatricka renowned forensic genealogist who lent her expertise to the case, and ABC journalist and host of Radio National podcast The Somerton Man Mystery, Fiona Ellis Joneshave also slow their time to respond to your top questions from our audience call-out.
The live feed will begin at midday but, in the meantime, here’s what you need to know about the case:
A man is found dead on the beach — but no-one knows who he is
Digital illustrator Daniel Voshart created an image of the Somerton Man based on the face mold created after he was found dead.(Supplied: Daniel Voshart)
On December 1, 1948, a man’s body was found slumped against a wall under the esplanade at Somerton Beach in Adelaide. But there were few clues to determine his identity.
He had a half-smoked cigarette on his lapel and a few personal items in his possession: two combs, a box of matches, a used bus ticket to the area, an unused second-class train ticket, a packet of chewing gum and cigarettes .
A post-mortem revealed the man had a “stinkingly” enlarged spleen and internal bleeding in the stomach and liver, and it was concluded the death resulted from poison.
Then the paper was found: ‘Tamam Shud’
In the months following the mystery man’s death, the case took a strange turn.
A suitcase believed to belong to him was found at Adelaide Railway Station. It contained an assortment of his belongings including a shaving brush, a knife in a sheath and boot polish.
The personal items found inside a suitcase believed to belong to the mysterious Somerton Man.(Supplied)
Some of his clothes had the tags removed and others, including his tie, had T Keane printed on them.
Then, a tiny rolled-up piece of paper inscribed with the words “Tamam Shud” was found hidden deep in the fob pocket of the man’s trousers.
The scrap of paper found in the Somerton Man’s fob pocket with the Persian words “Tamam Shud”.(Supplied: Professor Derek Abbott)
The torn paper was later traced back to a book of ancient Persian poetry, the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, which had been left in the back seat of a car near where the body was found.
The words roughly translate to “the end” or “the finish”, and the poems touch on themes including the need to live life to the fullest and having no regrets when it ends.
Was the Somerton Man a spy?
In July 1949, a copy of The Rubaiyat with the page containing “Tamam Shud” torn out was handed in to police.
The man who contacted the authorities said he found it in the back of his car in November 1948 — a month before the man’s body was discovered.
A scrap of paper which read Tamam Shud was torn from the final page of copy of Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám, authored by 12th-century poet, Omar Khayyám.(Supplied: Carolyn Billsborrow )
The book contained a sequence of letters and a couple of telephone numbers, but they didn’t lead investigators any closer to uncovering the Somerton Man’s identity.
The strange sequence and the fact labels had been removed from the man’s clothes fueled speculation he might have been a spy.
Forensic science and excavation crews were onsite to assist with the Somerton Man’s exhumation.(ABC News: Michael Clements)
ABC Radio Adelaide’s Daniel Keane spoke to University of Adelaide professor Derek Abbott last month, prior to the Somerton Man’s identity being uncovered, about the theories.
“I don’t think there’s compelling evidence — just these scattered circumstantial things that can be explained in different ways,” Professor Abbott said.
Last week, after decades of searching for answers, Professor Abbott and forensic genealogist Colleen Fitzpatrick made a breakthrough.
The previously unidentified man was named as Melbourne electrical engineer Carl “Charles” Webb — far from the answer some were expecting.
live updates
By Bridget Judd
You’re a little early, but check back at 12:00pm (AEST)
Over the next couple of hours, we’ll put your questions to Derek Abbottwho helped uncover the Somerton Man’s identity.
You can make a submission by clicking the blue ‘leave a comment’ button above.
The live stream will begin at 12:00 p.m. (AEST)so come and join the conversation then!
Hollywood actor Dev Patel has been spotted at the scene of a stabbing in Adelaide’s CBD.
Patel, known for his roles in Slumdog Millionaire and Lion, and who lives in Adelaide with his Australian girlfriend, was captured by 7NEWS cameras speaking with police after witnessing the incident on Gouger Street just after 8.45pm on Monday.
Emergency services had been called to the area following reports of a man and woman fighting in the street.
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The couple continued fighting inside a nearby service station where witnesses attempted to break up the fight.
The woman then allegedly stabbed the man in the chest.
Actor Dev Patel is seen talking with police after the incident. Credit: 7NEWSPolice attend the incident in Gouger Street. Credit: 7NEWS
A 32-year-old Glengowrie man was treated at the scene by ambulance officers before being taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
His injuries are not considered life-threatening. The 34-year-old woman from Park Holme was arrested at the scene.
The pair are known to each other, with South Australia Police saying the incident was not random.
The woman was charged with aggravated assault causing harm and has been refused bail.
She was to appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
Cast Armie Hammer, Tilda Cobham-Hervey and Dev Patel during a media call ahead of the Hotel Mumbai Australian Premiere on October 10, 2018 in Adelaide, Australia. Credit: James Elsby/Getty Images
Patel’s girlfriend, Adelaide-born actress Tilda Cobham-Hervey, starred alongside him in his 2018 film Hotel Mumbai.
The father of a young Adelaide boy whose death is being investigated by police has spoken of the “saddest day” he laid his son to rest.
Key points:
The boy, aged seven, died in February after he was rushed to hospital
Police are investigating whether his death was a result of criminal neglect
This is the second child death in recent weeks that a special police taskforce is investigating
WARNING: This story contains content that some readers may find upsetting.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains the name of a person who has died.
Kaurna-Narungga boy Makai, aged seven, died on February 10 but police yesterday revealed they have been investigating his death — the second suspected neglect case brought before the taskforce in less than a month.
ABC has spoken to Makai’s family and has obtained permission to use his name.
In a social media post, Makai’s father wrote the boy has been laid to rest in the new Kaurna Repatriation area at Smithfield Memorial Park in March.
“My son, Makai, will be the first Kaurna person to be laid to rest in a new location, designated for the Kaurna People,” he wrote.
“What an historic moment this will be and yet it will be the saddest day for me.”
In an earlier post, I thanked close family and friends who supported him and his child through “difficult and challenging time”.
“No father should watch his son die. Wouldn’t wish this on anyone. Not even my worst enemy,” the father wrote.
“The system I put my faith and trust in, failed me and my son,” he wrote in a separate post.
“I miss him so much, I wish he was here with me. I LOVE HIM,” he wrote on a different day.
Makai’s heart stopped three times
Makai’s relatives have claimed on a fundraising page that the Craigmore boy had suffered stomach pains in his final days.
The primary school student visited a doctor and had x-rays after complaining of stomach pains on February 7.
His doctor reviewed the x-ray results the next day and prescribed Makai laxatives.
Former police commissioner Mal Hyde will lead a government review into the agencies’ interactions with Charlie and Makai’s families.(abcnews)
However, Makai took a turn for the worse the following day, where he could not move and started to hallucinate, his relatives wrote on the fundraising page.
On February 10, Makai — with a swollen belly — was rushed to the Lyell McEwin Hospital by his father.
His heart stopped beating and he went into cardiac arrest twice, and doctors were able to revive him.
Makai underwent emergency surgery and was placed into an induced coma to be transferred to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
During the ambulance trip, Makai’s father was told the boy might not survive the journey to the hospital.
After arriving, Makai’s heart stopped for a third time and doctors were not able to resuscitate him.
The coroner’s report released the following week showed the seven-year-old had died from pneumonia in both lungs, sepsis and the MRSA superbug, a drug-resistant form of golden staph.
Police are investigating the death of Charlie for suspected neglect.(Supplied)
Makai’s relatives wrote the diagnosis was “a shock”, because pneumonia was not picked up at the Lyell McEwin Hospital nor by radiology.
The boy’s death is being investigated by Taskforce Prime, which was set up last month to investigate the death of six-year-old Charlie.
A government review — led by former police commissioner Mal Hyde — is underway to examine the interactions that agencies had with both children’s families and to identify any gaps in the child protection system.
The death of a seven-year-old in South Australia is being investigated as a case of possible criminal neglect.
SA Police detective superintendent Des Bray said Craigmore boy Makai was taken to Lyell McEwin Hospital “very sick” on February 10 and was then transferred to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, where he died later that day.
Task Force Prime, which was set up after the death of six-year-old Charlie, is now investigating whether the boy’s death was a case of criminal neglect.
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Investigators are also examining the care of his five siblings, aged between seven and 16.
Bray said a post-mortem examination following Makai’s death revealed several serious health issues.
He said the provisional cause of death was unusual, but was not a cause for immediate concern.
“The cause of death in itself wasn’t enough to raise concern because it was a serious, recognized health issue,” Bray said, adding that a coronial investigation was launched following the death.
About 10 days after Makai’s death, a coronial direction obtained information from “various child protection authorities”, which was then passed on to SA Police in July.
“Soon after, investigators began reviewing volumes of material and obtained an opinion from a pediatric expert,” he said.
“They formed the view that sufficient grounds existed to commence a criminal investigation of criminal neglect causing death.”
Bray said an interim cause of death had been determined but declined to comment further.
Superintendent Des Bray speaking to media. Credit: DAVID MARIUZ/AAPIMAGE
Investigators will determine whether anyone was guilty for Makai’s death or the neglect of the other siblings, Bray said.
Makai and his siblings had been staying in their father’s care since November 2020. Their mother was not living with him at the time of his death.
“There is neglect and abuse which we believe has occurred over a period of time but it doesn’t have all the same characteristics of Charlie’s,” Bray said.
Charlie was found unresponsive in her family home in Munno Para on July 15 and died in Lyell McEwin Hospital, sparking a police investigation into suspected neglect.
searching for answers
Following Charlie’s death, the state government ordered a review of the interactions between government agencies and the family in recent years.
Premier Peter Malinauskas on Monday announced a new wholly independent review would now investigate these interactions for both families.
“The death of any child is something that breaks all of our hearts, particularly parents across the state,” he told reporters.
“One was shocking, two is desperately heartbreaking.
“There is absolutely merit given the elevation of this for a wholly independent led review.”
Premier Peter Malinauskas said a new wholly independent review would now investigate the interactions between government agencies and the families. Credit: AAP
Malinauskas said he was “not wasting any time” and had appointed former SA police commissioner Mal Hyde to lead the review as “someone every South Australian has complete confidence in”.
“This is about making sure we have a review of integrity, of independence and robustness so we fully understand exactly what interactions occurred between government agencies and these families and to see whether or not there were any failures of systems that could be addressed,” he said.
“Two innocent children losing their lives potentially because of criminal neglect is beyond sad. But we know about it and we have to respond.”
Malinauskas said the findings of the review would be made public.
Bray said criminal neglect occurred when a person with a duty of care to a child failed to take all reasonable steps to protect them from harm, and a child is harmed or dies as a result of that neglect.
