More than two years after a couple were assaulted in their Mornington home detectives are making a renewed appeal for information as they reignite the investigation. Mornington Peninsula Crime Investigation Unit detectives have today released computer generated images of two men in the hope it will assist the investigation, following the aggravated burglary at a Grange Road home on Thursday 16 September 2021. Detectives have been told an offender forced his way into the home, armed with a firearm, and threatened the two residents sometime between 4-5am. A physical altercation ensured before the offender stole a mobile phone and fled…
Author: MP News Group
By Josh Sinclair* AS many of us enjoyed our summer holiday, a small parcel of reclaimed land inside Western Port made national headlines. Situated between a major steel manufacturer and the Long Island Point gas plant is the reclaimed land foreshadowed by the state government as the home to the Victorian Renewable Energy Terminal. The federal government’s recent intervention to halt the project has created uncertainty for the region and the offshore wind industry. However, given the sensitive environmental and biodiversity concerns of a Ramsar listed wetlands, it’s important these matters are handled delicately and with great care for our…
Moorabbin Crime Investigation Unit investigators have charged a teenager following a collision involving an allegedly stolen vehicle in Chelsea yesterday evening. The vehicle was allegedly spotted driving erratically in Carrum about 6.40pm, before being involved in a collision with two other vehicles at the intersection of Nepean Highway and Maury Street. It is alleged the male driver ran from the scene and was arrested by police nearby, with assistance from an off-duty member who was in one of the other vehicles. He was taken to hospital under police guard. The 16-year-old Mornington boy has been charged with three counts of…
OBITUARY Carl Robert Bryant 22 September 1928 – 13 November 2023 Carl Bryant was born in Hastings and was a descendant of three pioneering Western Port families: the Bryants, the Barclays and the Graydens. He passed away on 13 November 2023 in The Bays, Hastings where he had been a resident for several months. He was 95. In accordance with Carl’s wishes, no funeral service was held but he was interred in the Tyabb cemetery, Hastings, on 21 November. This tribute is based on information provided by his daughter, Jenny. *** Carl Robert Bryant was born at the family home…
Somerville Highway Patrol are investigating a fatal collision which occurred in Tootgarook Tuesday (20 February) morning. It is believed a Holden Commodore was travelling along Truemans Road when the driver crashed into a bin and then collided with a Holden Cruze at the intersection of Bona Street about 10.30am. The driver of the Holden Commodore, a 61-year-old Narre Warren man, died at the scene. The passenger of the Holden Cruze, a 58-year-old Tootgarook woman, sustained minor injuries and went to hospital for treatment. The driver of the vehicle, a 65-year-old Tootgarook woman, sustained minor injuries but did not require hospital…
The teenage driver of a stolen car, who has been linked to a number of aggravated burglaries, has been arrested by police after he crashed into a number of vehicles in Chelsea yesterday. Police first became aware of the stolen vehicle following reports to Triple Zero (000) that a car was driving erratically in Carrum about 6.40pm. Officers on patrol were making their way to the area when they received reports of a collision at the intersection of Nepean Highway and Maury Street shortly after. It is believed the driver of the stolen car was travelling north on Nepean Highway…
Trust: easily lost, hard to regain The relocation of the Harry Potter Experience to a less sensitive location at The Briars will come as a great relief to those who pressured Mornington Peninsula Shire Council to reconsider its decision. A new ecological report for this community forest (dog walking park) will be published on the shire website soon. This new location is 500 metres from the nearest point of the wildlife sanctuary and, we are told, will have minimal effect on the fauna and flora. CEO John Baker acknowledged that the community backlash definitely influenced this decision to change the…
SORRENTO SES unit was dealt a blow last week when thieves stole the unit’s ATV and trailer from its locked compound early Monday 12 February. The ATV’s registration number is 1LT1RD and the trailer’s is Y3119. Unit spokesperson Max Daw said they had CCTV footage and were disappointed that someone would target a volunteer organisation. “I was gutted, I came in and knew something was wrong, something had happened,” he said. “It took about two years to build and get this finished.” First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 20 February 2024
A MORE than 20-year drought has broken for the Rosebud Sea Scouts. Bruce Male was presented with his Queen’s Scout award on Saturday 10 February, the first received by a member of the group since 1999. The presentation made by DRRH Venturer unit leader Sam Blair was the first at the group since 1999. Fewer than five per cent of Venturer scouts aged 15-18 earn the award which involves achieving milestones, completing an adventurous journey, providing community service and leading others to achieve. Male’s achievements included such challenges as a seven-day 100-kilometre mountain hike, leading the only Victorian patrol to…
DREAMWEAVERS, a series of short documentary films about three Mornington Peninsula-based women who have suffered adversity and inspire others, will be screened as part of the Flinders Fringe Festival on Sunday (25 February). The series was made by award winning film makers Heather Forbes-McKeon and photographer for The News, Yanni Dellaportas. Gidja Walker, an ecologist and ethnobotanist who has worked for years protecting Earthscapes, overcame discrimination in a male dominated profession. Walker mentors young women entering the world of nature-based learning and an advocate for traditional owner custodianship. Jacquie Beddows suffered a stroke and aneurysm in 2011, aged 50. While…
THE release of the mainly Aboriginal names for Mornington Peninsula Shire’s 11 wards coincides with public approval being sought to name the “brand new Southern Peninsula Youth Hub in Rosebud”, Tounnin Wominjeka. The shire says it decided to use “traditional owner language” for the name after feedback from young people interacting with its youth services department and consulting with the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (Aboriginal names for $13m youth hub, The News 13/1/24). The land council had suggested three suitable names and the shire had since “engaged” with more than 360 young people, with most voting for Tounnin Wominjeka.…
THE former site of the Blue Moon hardware store in Red Hill is now a centre to exhibit works by emerging and established Mornington Peninsula artists. The temporary space opened last month and will feature a diverse range of works, including paintings, photographs, prints, sculptures, pottery, furniture, jewellery and illustrations. Featured artists include painters Margaret Amond, Mary Schepisi, Charlie and Gee (Gerald) Ryan, Joshua Searle and Michael Leeworthy; photographers Elizabeth Clancy, Oliver Altermatt and Philip Robertson; and sculptors; Jean Sheridan, Amy Leeworthy, Amber Skehan, Emma Cleine, Natalia Milosz-Piekarska and Mark Richardson. The space is managed by volunteers and has no…
Mornington Peninsula Crime Investigation Unit detectives have charged a teen after he was found sleeping in an allegedly stolen vehicle in Sommerville early morning Tuesday 13 February. Officers spotted the allegedly stolen white Nissan station wagon in a carpark on Eramosa Road about 3am. Police approached the vehicle to discover a male youth asleep inside. After gaining access to the vehicle, officers arrested the teen. It is alleged that the Nissan was stolen during a burglary in Clyde yesterday. A 16-year-old Korong Vale boy has been charged with theft of a motor vehicle, burglary and fail to stop vehicle on…
Frankston Sexual Offences & Child Abuse Investigation Team detectives are investigating an incident after a man was masturbating on a beach in Mornington in January. Police were told a man was seen at Mills Beach and engaged in sexual activity in the presence of three females at about 3.45pm on 24 January. Investigators have released a computer-generated image of a man they believe may be able to assist them with their enquiries. He is perceived to be Caucasian, about 50-years-old, with a slim build and grey/brown hair. The man was last seen wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and black shoes. Anyone…
THE SUDDEN influx of white-winged butterflies on the Mornington Peninsula has some people reaching for the insecticide, but experts say there is no need to be alarmed. The white butterfly invasion has been sparked by recent hot weather and the rapid growth of food source for the butterfly larvae and is occurring all over the country. Some gardeners are taking extra precautions to protect their vegie patches, but the butterflies – also known as cabbage moths – won’t be around for long, and provide a source of food for birds. President of the Filed Naturalists Association of Victoria, Max Campbell,…
A BYO picnic with live entertainment in the grounds of St Johns Anglican Church will be the finale at this year’s Flinders Fringe Festival. The entertainment will be headlined by Indigenous singer-songwriter Jess Hitchcock and Kee’Ahn. The community-focussed event will run on Sunday 25 February from midday to 3pm, with tickets at $15 adults and $5 children and concessions. Picnic-goers can take their own food and beverages or buy from the Flinders Pre-School barbecue stall. Curated and produced by Sally Baillieu and a team of volunteers, the fringe finale will start with a welcome to country by Bunurong Land Council,…
IT hadn’t been driven for more than 40 years, but that did not deter the car restoring team at Mornington Men’s Shed from trying to get it back on the road. Three years after acquiring this 1967 MGB, the team has delivered on the task and rebuilt the car and its engine almost from the ground up. President Mark Parritt said about 10 shed members shared their skills and talents to get the car back in shape, with some outside help when special machinery was required. “There are a few of us who have restored cars before, but it’s also…
Shire keeping off the grass Couch grass growing uncontrollably along the Esplanade walk at Mornington where the paid parking trial is underway is almost as tall as a fence. This is just one of many uncontrollable weed patches along this walk. Ratepayers were promised that the paid parking trial was for the upkeep of our foreshore. Really? It certainly proves true that the proof is in the pudding. Mornington Peninsula Shire has made a lot of money from the trial which none of us asked for. The shire is certainly not maintaining anything. The obvious question remains: What exactly is…
By Sarah Russell MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire has a track record of failing to consult ratepayers about important decisions. First, it came for older people who use aged care services. Then it came for our beloved wildlife sanctuary at The Briars. In 2022, councillors voted to outsource aged care services to corporate providers, a decision presented to the local community as a fait accompli. Thousands of vulnerable older people were left without home care – some for several months. Then mayor Cr Anthony Marsh said the council wanted “to ensure our residents had a choice and the advantage of a competitive…
SEA scouts from across the Mornington Peninsula will gather in Mornington this Sunday (18 February) as 2nd Mornington Sea Scouts hosts its inaugural carnival day at Scouts Beach. Group leader Dan Power said the day would be packed with water and beach activities and would be a great chance for sea scouts to show their skills on a family-friendly day out. “Our beach carnival will include a number of events – canoe and kayak regattas, beach activities, including beach sprints, obstacle course, sandcastle battle, wading, and more. Each of these activities will be run in rounds via a knockout system…
A PANAMANIAN-flagged liquid petroleum gas tanker that lost its propellor in Bass Strait was forced to anchor for several days until emergency vessels could tow it to Flinders. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority has confirmed that the LPG tanker Bougainville lost propulsion on 2 February during pre-arrival main engine testing, and was later found to have lost its propeller. The vessel was then forced to anchor near Phillip Island in Bass Strait until emergency vessels arrived on 5 February to tow it to Flinders. An AMSA spokesperson said the authority was “satisfied that the crew was safe, and that the…
PARKS Victoria is digging up the past at Cape Schanck and giving visitors the chance to see an archaeological dig in action. This weekend’s open day will provide an insight into archaeology at Cape Schanck’s historic light station. Over the past three summers, a dig by the Cape Schanck Archaeological Field School has explored the hidden history of the light station and given student archaeologists the chance to do field work at a place steeped in Aboriginal and post-colonial heritage. “The dig has given archaeology students a rare opportunity to participate in the excavation of a significant site and learn…
A NEW breast imaging suite at Frankston Hospital has been named after the former MP for Dunkley, the late Peta Murphy, who died from cancer last December. The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan today joined Murphy’s family at the opening of the Peta Murphy Breast Imaging Suite on Saturday 3 February. “Peta took great pride in the Labor Party’s role in the story of Australia’s public health system. It is so fitting that this wonderful addition bears her name,” Albanese said. “Thanks to Peta’s advocacy, the women of Dunkley have a new quality service close to…
MAREE Feutrill was last month made CEO Saltbush Balnarring Beach, a not-for-profit group that provides respite holiday accommodation to families in need and parents with children who have disabilities. Her appointment follows the resignation of Rachel Connor who had been with the organisation for a decade. Feutrill joins Saltbush after spending four years working with remote Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory developing preventative health programs. She is the former area manager for YMCA Camping, and previously led Camp Manyung at Mount Eliza for two decades where she specialised in camping and outdoor education for people with disabilities, culturally and…
THE Liberal Party has promised to spend $900 million to electrify the rail link from Frankston to Baxter if it wins government. Opposition leader Peter Dutton made the pledge in Frankston on Friday as part of the campaign by the Liberal Party’s Dunkley by-election candidate, Frankston mayor Nathan Conroy. The planned electrification and duplication of the Stony Point line from Frankston to Baxter was abandoned by the federal government after an infrastructure review last year. A business case has estimated it would cost $1.5 billion to electrify and duplicate the train line to Baxter. Dutton said having diesel trains running…
A FURORE over foreshore access has highlighted the divide between conservation and public right of use. A recent decision by the foreshore committee at Capel Sound to prevent “goat tracks” being used for people to access the beach has upset some nearby residents. Eighty-two-year-old Darryl Donaldson, who lives on Point Nepean Road, said he and a few neighbours had come to enjoy immediate access to the beach for “decades” by using tracks through the bush. He did not believe the tracks were causing any damage to the delicate coastal bush environment, where they had existed for up to 50 years.…
A FRESH push for the decommissioned water reservoir in Kunyung Road Mount Eliza to be protected from development and kept as community space has begun in the lead up to the Dunkley by-election. Mornington MP Chris Crewther, shadow minister James Newbury, South Eastern Centre for Sustainability president Steve Karakitsos and Ian Morrison, of Mount Eliza, visited the site on Tuesday 23 January. The MP and candidate had earlier inspected the Beleura cliff path at Mornington which has been closed because of landslides (‘Spy cameras’ on wrong track, The News 30/1/24). The South East Water reservoir land has been handed to…
A teenaged motorcyclist has been arrested after allegedly clocking speeds of up to 160km/h while evading police on the Mornington Peninsula last week, before posting the vision to social media. Police were travelling on the Mornington Peninsula Freeway at Dromana on Monday 28 January, when they observed a motorcycle with its licence plates concealed, about 1pm. It will be alleged the motorcycle was ridden only on its rear tyre before accelerating at high speeds. Police attempted to stop the rider in McCrae a short time later, however, he allegedly rode off at 160km/h, and began weaving through heavy traffic. It…
THE Southern Peninsula Angling Club is out to lure new members. “We’re a family friendly club that encourages and practices responsible fishing. It is open to people of all ages,” treasurer Alain Gaspard said. The club meets once a month and potential members can attend three general meetings before deciding whether they would like to join. “Our meeting consists of fishing reports, raffles, competitions’ reports, events, and financial report,” Gaspard said. Guest speakers cover such topics as water safety, baits, tackle and rigs targeting snapper, whiting, salmon and gummy shark. The club’s 65 members – men, women and children -…
THE Disabled Surfers Association Mornington Peninsula’s first beach day of the year saw 156 surfers and more than 300 volunteers at Pt Leo on 20 January. Since 2012, DSAMP has been fulfilling its mission to put “smiles on dials” by offering safe, accessible and fun surfing experiences to surfers of all disabilities. Established by Gary Blaschke in 1986, the Disabled Surfers Association of Australia now has more than 19 chapters in Australia and one in New Zealand. “In the 12 years since we started, we have watched our events continue to grow,” DSAMP president Pea Saunders said. “There’s a fantastic…