BRISBANE, Australia — Former world champion kayaker Nathan Baggaley and his younger brother are set to be sentenced over a bungled cocaine-smuggling plot. The brothers were each found guilty by a jury in April of attempting to import up to AU$200 million ($147.4 million) worth of cocaine into the country. Brisbane Supreme Court Justice Ann Lyons is due to sentence both men on July 27. Dru Baggaley, 39, and another man Anthony Draper went on an 11-hour, 223-mile journey out to sea on a rigid-hulled inflatable boat on July 30, 2018, to meet a foreign freighter carrying packages of cocaine. The men retrieved…
Author: zenger.news
Ice cores from a remote glacier in the Tibetan plateau reveal unknown viruses dating to the Pleistocene Epoch nearly 15,000 years ago. Scientists analyzing ice cores taken from the Guliya ice cap in 2015 have found genetic codes for 33 viruses, all new species. Twenty-eight are novel viruses; the other four were previously identified as viruses that infect bacteria and plants, not animals or humans, microbiologist Zhi-Ping Zhong told Zenger. A virus is a small parasite that cannot reproduce itself, but once it infects a vulnerable cell, it can produce more viruses. “There have been only two reports of viruses…
MELBOURNE, Australia — The Australian state of Victoria has reported 11 new local Covid-19 cases as the state government pleads for people to continue getting tested, so a lockdown can be lifted. All the new locally acquired cases are linked to Victoria’s current Delta strain outbreaks and were in isolation for their entire infectious period. Another case was recorded in hotel quarantine, with active infections across the state rising to 190. More than 25,000 test results were received in the 24 hours to midnight on July 26, while almost 14,000 vaccine doses were administered at state-run sites during the same period.…
SYDNEY — A New South Wales government’s, in the southeastern region of Australia, decision to remove warning signs for mobile speed cameras resulted in AU$4 million ($2.94 million) worth of fines for low-range offenses in May 2021 alone, the state opposition says. “The monthly revenue haul for breaches of less than 10 kilometers per hour (6.2 miles per hour) is the highest on record,” said Chris Minns, New South Wales Labor leader. By way of comparison, 1547 fines were issued by New South Wales police for such offenses in May 2020 and 27,144 in May 2021, an increase of 1655 percent. Minns said the…
SYDNEY — New South Wales has reported 145 new locally acquired cases of Covid-19, and at least 76 of those people were circulating in the community for all or part of their infectious period. Greater Sydney and surrounding regions are in lockdown until at least July 30, while three local government areas in the southeastern state, New South Wales, are in lockdown until at least July 28. Of the 145 new cases in the 24 hours to 8 pm on July 25, 51 were in the community for the entirety of their infectious period, and 25 were in the community for…
ADELAIDE, Australia — South Australian officials are finalizing plans to bring the state out of its week-long Covid-19 lockdown amid growing confidence a cluster of virus cases has been contained. Premier Steven Marshall said the shutdown will end at one minute past midnight on July 28, provided there are no further “unlinked” Covid-19 cases. That will also be contingent on final health advice on July 26, when transition arrangements for sporting fixtures are also expected to be detailed. “Working together, we have been able to demonstrate we can get through this very difficult situation,” Marshall said. “We are absolutely delighted with how the…
SYDNEY — Local government elections in New South Wales will again be delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. There are 128 local government councils in the southeastern Australian state, New South Wales. Each council represents a local government area. 125 councils will be holding elections on December 2021 for the election of councilors. Some councils will also be holding mayoral elections, constitutional referendums, and/or polls. 35 councils across the state of New South Wales are holding a mayoral election in addition to the election of councilors. It is the second postponement for the elections, which were initially scheduled for September 2020 but…
CANBERRA, Australia — Dodgy bosses who exploit migrant farm workers will face new criminal offenses and fines under a proposed crackdown on misconduct. The Morrison government has released draft legislation for consultation ahead of a dedicated agriculture visa being introduced later in the year. Using people’s immigration status to coerce workers will be outlawed, along with pressuring people to accept employment conditions that breach visa conditions. The draft bill also bans employers who break the law from employing new migrant workers for a specified period. Civil penalties for breaches of migration laws will be increased. Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said the government wanted…
PERTH, Australia — Infected crew members from a second inbound ship in two weeks have been hospitalized in Western Australia after supposedly picking up Covid-19 in Indonesia en route to the state capital. The Darya Krishna bulk carrier berthed at Fremantle Port on July 26 to allow for the emergency medical evacuation. Authorities had flagged that three symptomatic crew members would be hospitalized, but as of the afternoon of July 26, only two had been removed from the ship. They were transferred to Fiona Stanley Hospital. A Western Australian Health spokesman said the third person was expected to be transferred later…
SYDNEY — A jeweler who sent a threatening letter to a southeastern Australian state, New South Wales, member of parliament and was found with blueprints to create 3D-printed guns will continue to be supervised by the state. Christopher Bruce Hardy has been placed on another extended supervision order for 18 months following continued “paranoid and rigid thinking.” In the New South Wales Supreme Court, Justice Peter Johnson said the now 48-year-old posed an unacceptable risk of committing a serious terrorism offense and that it was an “unusual case.” Hardy had no history of criminal behavior or extremist beliefs until sending a…