Bischoff family seeks Bali answers

The bodies of Noelene Bischoff and her daughter Yvana are already being examined by authorities. Source: AAP

THE family of Noelene and Yvana Bischoff just want to find out what killed them in Bali so they can be finally laid to rest.

Their bodies arrived at Brisbane Airport about 5am (AEST) on Saturday after an Indonesian police investigation found their deaths were not suspicious.

The pair became violently ill and both died last week less than a day after checking in at the Padang Bai resort.

Noelene, a 54-year-old nurse, died while being taken by ambulance to a hospital in Denpasar.

Yvana, 14, died hours later at the clinic without knowing her mother was dead.

Queensland's coroner has immediately began investigating the cause of the Bischoff deaths.

Noelene's brother Malcolm wants to find out quickly so he can bury his sister and niece.

But he knows a thorough investigation is likely to take a long time.

"It doesn't matter what the result is either way, whether it's, you know, food poisoning or some other sort poisoning, at the end of it all we still have two dead people," Mr Bischoff told AAP.

"It doesn't bring them back, but at least it will be clear in our minds what the reason was and lay the girls to rest."

While Indonesian authorities have suggested their deaths were caused by an allergic reaction, relatives think it is more likely they suffered food poisoning, perhaps from fish they ate for dinner.

Mr Bischoff said until investigators find out the exact cause, anyone travelling to Bali could also be at risk.

"My sister and Yvana weren't doing anything dangerous, they were just an average family on an average holiday," he said.

"There were heaps of people on the plane they (Noelene and Yvana) were flown back on this morning, all those people had all been to Bali for the week.

"This could've been any one of them, people need to remember that."

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DPP to look at murder charges for McNeil

THE NSW attorney-general has asked authorities to assess whether murder charges can be laid against the man who punched Daniel Christie, whose life support has been turned off.

Mr Christie, 18, was taken to St Vincent's Hospital in a critical condition after allegedly being punched by Shaun McNeil in Kings Cross on New Year's Eve.

And after 11 days in hospital his life support was turned off on Saturday afternoon.

Attorney-general Greg Smith said he has asked the acting director of public prosecutions "to closely examine this case with a view to determining if murder charges are appropriate in light of the evidence, and in light of the alleged offender's reported martial arts experience."

After a meeting with the family of Thomas Kelly, who also died after a king-hit attack in Kings Cross, Mr Smith said he's giving "careful consideration to their proposals."

The Kelly's in November began a petition calling for drunkenness to be a mandatory aggravating factor that must be taken into account in sentencing.

The petition, started in November, was at about 25,000 signatures before New Year's Eve.

And following the alleged assault on Mr Christie, that surged to more than 124,000.

Mr Smith wouldn't comment further on the case, but did pass on his condolences to the Christie family.

"Daniel Christie's death is a senseless tragedy which will rightly outrage and sadden everyone in NSW. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this difficult time," he said in a statement.

"I cannot imagine their pain and anguish, their despair and devastation and I am humbled by their dignity and the generous gesture of donating Daniel's organs."

Police expect further charges to be laid against his alleged attacker when he next appears in court in March.

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More charged in Qld drive-by shootings

A SECOND man has been charged following suspected drug-related drive-by shootings in North Mackay last week.

Police said a 21-year-old man from Blacks Beach was charged with wilful damage and maiming an animal.
He is expected to appear in the Mackay Magistrates Court on January 13.

The Courier-Mail reported yesterday that in addition to five homes that were fired at early Wednesday morning, a bullet had been found in Meadow Street, North Mackay.

``Some of the houses were either mistaken identity or targeted," Mackay District Acting Superintendent Andy Graham said.

``The incident itself is drug-related … some of (the residents) appear to have no linkage at all."

Anyone with information which could assist with this matter should contact Crime Stoppers anonymously via 1800 333 000 or crimestoppers.com.au 24hrs a day.
 

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Aussie soldier missing in US

AN Australian soldier has gone missing while on leave in the United States.

Captain Paul McKay was last seen in Saranac Lake, New York State, on New Year's Eve.

"Captain McKay was reported missing to US authorities by family members," Defence said in a statement on Saturday.

He arrived in the US on December 29 and local police believe he was headed to Lake Placid in the state's north, the ABC reports.

Defence said support is being provided to Captain McKay's family and US and Australian agencies are working to locate him.

No further information was available.

"Due to privacy legislation, Defence will not provide any further personal or service details relating to Captain McKay," Defence said.

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Royal commission one year on

MORE than 1000 victims of child sex abuse have given evidence to a royal commission during its first year of operation.

Victims were mainly men, now aged between 50 and 69, and abuse occurred predominantly in children's homes, 70 per cent of which were run by religious groups, statistics from the commission show.

Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse chief Janette Dines said testimony from courageous victims had provided information that would usually be difficult to obtain.

"For example, commissioners have heard in private sessions that sexual abuse is often accompanied by serious physical abuse, particularly when that abuse occurred decades ago," she said.

"Other similarities include a generally stated dissatisfaction with the criminal justice system and the anguish felt by many victims that despite attempts to disclose the abuse at the time it occurred, they were not believed."

The commission was established on January 11, 2013.

After staff were employed and venues secured in April, private hearings began in May.

The first public hearing was in September in Brisbane and more than 80 witnesses have spoken.

The commission expects to hold 21 weeks of public hearing this year and aims to provide 800 private sessions with four weeks to be held in regional areas.

"The royal commission has achieved much in its first 12 months," Ms Dines said.

"But it is clear that it continues to face a huge task."

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No crime in Bischoff case: Indon police

The bodies of Noelene and Yvana Bischoff are expected to arrive in Brisbane on Saturday. Source: AAP

INDONESIAN authorities say they haven't found evidence to suggest the deaths of a Queensland mother and her teenage daughter at a Bali resort were the result of a crime.

The bodies of Caloundra nurse Noelene Bischoff, 54, and her daughter Yvana, 14, will be flown to Brisbane on Friday night and arrive on Saturday morning.

The close-knit mum and daughter died on January 4 after becoming violently ill, less than 24 hours after checking in at a beachfront resort on the east coast of the island.

Food poisoning, allergic reactions and intoxication from drugs have been suggested as possible causes.

Indonesian authorities refused to release the pair's bodies on Thursday because they couldn't rule out whether criminal activity was involved in their deaths.

However, on Friday Indonesian police said the bodies would be flown to Australia, after they found no evidence of crime.

About 30 types of medicines were found in their hotel room by Indonesian police and laboratory results of vomit from the scene came in on Friday.

Detective Superintendent Adnan Pandibu, who is leading the investigation in Indonesia, told AAP no toxins were found, and the deaths didn't appear to be suspicious.

"The main point is that the investigators haven't found preliminary evidence that a crime has happened," he said.

"As the family requested, the bodies will be sent back to Australia today."

A spokesman for Virgin told AAP the bodies were due to be flown into Brisbane just after 5am (AEST) on Saturday and taken to the John Tonge Centre in Coopers Plains for autopsies.

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Perth gas odorant leak tracked to centre

THE mystery gas smell which worried hundreds of Perth residents was likely to have been a leak of gas odorant from the industrial centre in Kwinana, south of the city.

An investigation was launched by authorities on Thursday, after hundreds of complaints were made to ATCO Gas Australia, with some residents claiming the smell was so strong it woke them up.

ATCO ruled out a gas leak from any of their infrastructure, with the Department of Environment Regulation (DER) taking over the investigation.

In a statement, DER said it was continuing its inquiry into the cause of the smell, but confirmed they were focusing on premises in the Kwinana industrial area.

"It is likely the odour was the result of a leak of gas odorant which is generally injected into otherwise odourless gases so they can be detected by people," a statement said.

"These gas odorants can be detected in the air at extremely low levels - as little as one part per billion."

The DER said they believed the emissions had ceased, however, investigations were continuing.

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Police hunt teen after farmer threatened

A FARMER was threatened by a teen armed with a stolen firearm after a break-in on the NSW north coast.

Police say two teenagers forced entry into a farmhouse on Greens Lane at Swan Creek between 2pm and 5pm (AEDT) on Thursday and stole a firearm, two hunting knives and a quad bike before fleeing.

A short time later a farmer confronted the pair on another property, believing they were shooting at his cattle.

Police have been told one of the teenagers pointed the firearm at the farmer before attempting to flee on the quad bike.

They escaped on foot into bushland.

A search for the pair resumed at 7am on Friday after they were spotted on Coldstream Road at Tyndale.

Just after midday a 15-year-old boy was found by a police dog in a cane paddock at Tyndale and is now assisting police.

A search is continuing for the second teenager who was last seen crossing the Clarence River in a stolen boat.

It's believed he is in the Maclean/Yamba area.

He is described as being of Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander appearance, aged in his mid to late teens and approximately 170cm tall, wearing blue shorts and a blue shirt.

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Remaining Brothers in police sights

A Brothers for Life gang leader has been caught and arrested on Sydney's central coast. Source: AAP

POLICE have vowed to go after other members of violent western Sydney gang Brothers for Life after the arrest of three key members, including alleged leader Farhad Qaumi.

Fourteen members of the gang have been arrested since November and while police believe membership is shrinking by the day, they say their work is not yet done.

NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Nick Kaldas said speculation the group was finished was premature but he was optimistic those who had caused the damage were in custody or "neutralised".

The gang, linked to murder and shootings, was further disrupted when police raided homes in Sydney and the NSW central coast on Wednesday, arresting Qaumi and two others.

"In many ways this is just the beginning," Mr Kaldas told reporters on Thursday.

"We pretty much know what has happened with just about all of the shootings that have occurred in the last 12 months."

Middle Eastern Organised Crime Squad commander Detective Superintendent Deborah Wallace said gang members should hand themselves in to police before officers go to them.

"They know who you are," she said.

"I suggest you knock on our door before they knock on yours."

Mr Kaldas said on Thursday that police realised they needed to act quicker to curb the gang's violent activities after a shooting at Rose Bay on New Year's Day.

Qaumi, 31, was found at Bondi Beach with a bullet wound after being hit when a chartered luxury cruiser was peppered with shots at Rose Bay on January 1. He was treated at St Vincent's Hospital but discharged himself within hours.

Police allege Qaumi, also known as "the Afghan", is the head of the Brothers for Life Blacktown chapter, which has been at war with the original Bankstown chapter, with the infighting linked to shootings on Sydney's streets and a murder.

"It will be alleged he is a leader of a group and leader of a faction that has been involved in most of the shootings that have occurred in Sydney in the last three or four months," Mr Kaldas said.

Qaumi and his brother, 29-year-old Mumtaz Ahmed Qaumi, a senior gang member, were charged with firearm and drug offences on Wednesday.

The elder brother was flanked by police as he appeared in Wyong Local Court on Thursday.

They were also charged with knowingly directing the criminal activities of a group.

The brothers did not apply for bail, which was formally refused.

Masieh Amiri, 27, who was also arrested in the Wednesday crackdown, was charged with drug and gun offences and did not apply for bail when he appeared in Parramatta Local Court.

Last November police arrested 11 alleged senior members of Brothers for Life members following a shooting in 2012 and another last year.

Among them was Mohammed Hamzy, the Bankstown faction leader and cousin of Brothers for Life founder Bassam Hamzy, 34.

Police say Brothers for Life initially started as a group loyal to Bassam Hamzy, who is serving a jail term for the 1998 murder of Kris Toumazis outside a Sydney night club.

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Rudd surprised Gates remembers anything

Robert Gates' memoir contains an anecdote about a dinner he shared with former PM Kevin Rudd (pic). Source: AAP

KEVIN Rudd says he's surprised the former US defence secretary can remember anything from the night he dozed off during a long speech by the former Australian prime minister.

Robert Gates revealed in his memoir that during a 2008 visit to Australia he fell asleep at a dinner held in his honour, as Mr Rudd "began a long soliloquy on the history of Australia".

Mr Gates, who was taking medication for a broken shoulder, "should have taken up Mr Rudd's suggestion... to forget dinner and just go home to bed," Mr Rudd's spokeswoman said in a statement.

"Given the number of pain-killing drugs he was on when he arrived at the Lodge, Mr Rudd thought it was surprising Mr Gates could remember anything from the evening at all," she said.

In the memoir, Mr Gates wrote: "I had made it just past World War I when the combined effect of a painkiller, jet lag, and a glass of wine caused me to fall asleep.

"This led to not-so-subtle attempts by my American colleagues at the table to rouse me."

Mr Rudd's spokeswoman added that Mr Rudd had himself fallen asleep while foreign minister when the "body clock kicked in at the wrong time".

Mr Gates' book has also made headlines around the world for its criticisms of US President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden.

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