'Put our mind to rest': WA family plead for information after grandfather's mystery death
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7NEWS
6 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Woman found stabbed to death in Coleraine, Victoria
A man has been arrested after a woman was found stabbed to death in Victoria's southwest. Police were called to a home in Pilleau Street, Coleraine, about 1.10am Saturday to reports a woman had been stabbed. Officers arrived to find the injured woman, who died at the scene. A man known to the woman has been taken into police custody. A murder investigation has been launched and homicide detectives have been sent to the scene. The Coleraine man will be interviewed by detectives in relation to the woman's death. Coleraine is a small town near the South Australian border, with a population of about 850 people. It is located about four hours west of Melbourne and is known for its strong wool industry. Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Perth Now
6 hours ago
- Perth Now
‘Surreal': Dog walker's chilling discovery
Port Lincoln locals Katie and her friend were walking up Slipway Rd on Thursday afternoon. Just moments earlier, police had announced they had discovered a human skull in the walking trails and scrubland between Slipway Rd and Hindmarsh Rd on the eastern edge of the popular fishing town. The discovery marked another grisly twist in the Tamika Chesser case, which has sent shockwaves through the small and close-knit Eyre Peninsula community. 'I'm relieved for the family, it's a bit of closure for them,' Katie said. 'But I feel devastated for the person that found it.' Tyson McCallum was also walking in the area when his dog Benji the Beaglier found what police believe is a human head. 'I just went in a bit closer and kind of made the connection pretty quickly as to what I thought it was,' he told 9News. '(It was) pretty surreal to be honest,' he added. 'I was kind of like 'No way, it's not what I think it is, surely not'. But it was too coincidental.' Ms Chesser, a former Beauty and the Geek contestant, is accused of murdering her boyfriend Julian Story at the pair's Port Lincoln unit around midnight on June 17. Police allege she also dismembered Mr Story's body, removing his head. The skull was found in walking trails between Slipway Rd and Hindmarsh St on the eastern edge of Port Lincoln, South Australia. NewsWire / Duncan Evans Credit: News Corp Australia SA Police delivered the shock announcement on Thursday afternoon. Dean Martin Credit: News Corp Australia Ms Chesser was then allegedly captured on CCTV in the hours afterwards walking with a bag, dogs and dressed in heavy clothing. She was arrested on June 19 and charged with murder and destroy human remains. South Australian Police and SES volunteers fanned out across the town to search for Mr Story's missing remains in the days and weeks following the alleged murder, but the search was suspended last week. But in a shock development, police announced on Thursday afternoon they believed they had found Mr Story's head. A resident walking their dog found the skull and reported it to the authorities, police said. 'Preliminary investigations and phone calls to forensic science centre (indicate) the remains are most likely human, and I believe they are the remains of Julian Story,' Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke said. 'To confirm this, those remains will be subject to further testing over the coming days. Mr Story's family have been contacted and updated on next steps, the Superintendent said. Tamika Chesser starred in Beauty and the Geek. Picture Supplied Credit: Supplied Alleged murder victim Julian Story. Supplied Credit: Supplied Katie's friend, who did not wish to be named, said she was no longer worried she would 'stumble across it'. Katie said the discovery would likely reignite interest among locals in the case, which has gripped the town over the past few weeks. 'It's going to go mental,' Katie said. Ms Chesser's case has generated widespread interest because of her glamorous former life and the brutal nature of the alleged killing. Greg, who has lived in Port Lincoln since the 1970s, said locals discussed the case regularly. 'It was a gruesome bloody incident,' he said, speaking before Thursday's discovery. 'This town, we've never had anything like that before.' Harley Hozer, who lives across the road from the unit complex where Ms Chesser and Mr Story lived, said the allegations had 'shook the town'. 'It shook the town a little bit,' she told NewsWire. 'We've dealt with some crime before but nothing like this. 'It shocked me, that's for sure.' Police cars and cops patrolled the entry points to the scrubland across Thursday, with police line closing off the area. Detectives could be seen walking into the trails. That same day, Ms Chesser appeared at Port Lincoln Magistrates Court at 9.30am on three separate matters. Police allege she behaved in a disorderly manner at a tobacco store on Port Lincoln's Liverpool St and at the Port Lincoln Police station, both on February 14, 2025, It is further alleged she assaulted a woman on November 1 last year. It is listed as a summary offence, meaning it is considered a low level of offending. She is also alleged to have assaulted a police officer on June 20 this year, one day after she was arrested for the alleged killing of Mr Story. Ms Chesser was captured on CCTV walking with her dogs in the hours after the alleged murder. SA Police Credit: Supplied Ms Chesser appeared at Port Lincoln Magistrates Court on Thursday morning. NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia The 34-year-old woman appeared via AVL from James Nash House, a psychiatric facility, where she greeted the magistrate and answered questions for the first time in court. She sported a shaved head and wore a blue sweater and greeted Magistrate Patrick Hill with a 'hello'. Justin Slater, a solicitor with the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, represented her in court. He told Mr Hill he had ordered 'reports' into the charges. 'We are doing our own reports in relation to these matters,' he said. He asked Mr Hill to adjourn matters until a charge determination had been made for Ms Chesser's more serious allegations and Mr Hill agreed to the request, setting December 18 at Port Lincoln for the next hearing. When asked if she understood her hearing would be adjourned, Ms Chesser replied: 'Yep'. The Boston Marine shipyards sit next to the Hindmarsh St and Slipway Rd scrubland. Duncan Evans Credit: News Corp Australia Port Lincoln is a famous fishing town located on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula. Duncan Evans Credit: News Corp Australia Mr Slater declined to comment on the charges or Ms Chesser's condition after the hearing. Thursday's hearing marked the second time Ms Chesser had fronted court following her first appearance at Adelaide Magistrates Court last month on the murder and destroy human remains charges. Those matters are listed to be heard in Adelaide on December 12. Mr Story was a Port Lincoln local, while Ms Chesser had only recently moved to the area from Queensland. She starred in the second series of the hit reality TV show Beauty and the Geek in 2010, finishing in second place. She has also worked as a model for a range of brands including Target and appeared in men's magazines including Ralph and FHM, a profile for her on Star Now states. Her Instagram and Facebook social media profiles are filled with racy and glamorous images. A funeral service for Mr Story is expected next week.
Sky News AU
9 hours ago
- Sky News AU
'Wake up call': Securty expert says Australians must take security more seriously following ASIO boss' espionage warning
Strategic Analysis Australia founder and Director Peter Jennings told Sky News host Steve Price that comments made by the boss of ASIO should be a wake-up call to all Australians on the threat foreign espionage poses. ASIO chief Mike Burgess at a conference in Adelaide revealed foreign espionage was costing the Australian economy $12.5 billion a year as he unveiled the inaugural cost of espionage report. Reacting on Sky News on Friday, Mr Jennings told host Steve Price that it was not surprising. 'This is industrial level espionage and intellectual property theft," he said. 'And of course it's being directed against Australia because we're a high technology country with very significant alliance relations with the United States and other developed economies, and it will be happening all the time.' Mr Jennings said that Australia needed to be taking steps to protect its military and economy from people who were looking to take advantage of the situation, adding that businesses needed to be aware of the risks they are facing. 'Mike Burgess touches on this in his speech as well, how naive Australians are to imagine that it couldn't possibly happen here or it wouldn't happen to my business,' he said. 'And Mike actually quotes Australian officials saying, oh, well, no one would be interested in going after my information. This is industrial level espionage and intellectual property theft' Mr Burgess on Thursday said "Many entities do not know their secrets have been stolen, or do not realise they've been stolen by espionage, or do not report the theft.' He also said that there were many countries that were committing this espionage. 'The obvious candidates are very active – I've previously named China, Russia and Iran – but many other countries are also targeting anyone and anything that could give them a strategic or tactical advantage, including sensitive but unclassified information.' Mr Burgess also said that he could not understand why some people were mentioning on social media that they carried a security clearance. "On just one professional networking site, the profiles of more than 35,000 Australians indicate they have access to sensitive and potentially classified information. Around 7,000 reference their work in the defence sector, including the specific project they are working on, the team they are working in, and the critical technologies they are working with," he said. "Close to 400 explicitly say they work on AUKUS, and the figure rises above 2,000 if you include broader references to 'submarines' and 'nuclear'.
