Seven people have been charged with manslaughter over the death of Lino Atem, who was fatally stabbed in a Wyndham Vale park in January 2025. Homicide Squad detectives made the arrests on 21 October, with help from the VIPER Taskforce. The accused include three 17-year-old boys, who will appear in children's court, and four adults, who will appear at the Melbourne Magistrates' Court later that day. The charges follow a fight among a group of men at a park on Haines Drive. Two of Mr Atem's friends, aged 27, were hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries.
Pentland Calisthenics College will hold its 48th Annual Display on Sunday 25 October at St Francis Catholic College in Melton. Performers will show the routines they have developed over the year. Calisthenics combines dancing, singing and gymnastics. The college says it welcomed more than 110 members across seven competitive sections and its CaliFit program in 2026. Its Masters Red team was named Division 7 State Champion. The display runs from 10am to 4pm. Tickets cost $25 for those aged 17 and over and $15 for those aged 16 and under. Next year marks the college's 50th anniversary.
The Bendigo Agricultural Show opens a new era with its recently completed Showgrounds Function Centre, which will host all homecraft competitions. The 882 square metre pavilion replaces several nearby sheds. Bendigo Agricultural Show Society executive officer Ian Furze said early reaction to the building has been very positive. The redevelopment, valued at $20 million, also includes a new arena surface with electronic irrigation and a former speedway dustbowl repurposed as asphalt parking. The show runs today and tomorrow, Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October, from 9am to 9pm.
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A preferred bidder has been chosen to transform Sunshine Station in Melbourne into a six-platform transport superhub. The Network Integration Program Alliance, made up of CPB Contractors and SMEC, will deliver the Stage 1 works, due for completion in 2030. The upgrades include new regional train platforms, an extended concourse, new forecourts and an upgraded bus interchange. Three of five Stage 1 packages have already been awarded. Stage 2 works, which will extend the line to a new Keilor East station, start in coming weeks and are due for completion in 2031.
Seven people have been charged with manslaughter over the death of Lino Atem, who was fatally stabbed in a Wyndham Vale park in January 2025. Homicide Squad detectives made the arrests on 21 October, with help from the VIPER Taskforce. The accused include three 17-year-old boys, who will appear in children's court, and four adults, who will appear at the Melbourne Magistrates' Court later that day. The charges follow a fight among a group of men at a park on Haines Drive. Two of Mr Atem's friends, aged 27, were hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries.
Seven people have been charged with manslaughter over the death of Lino Atem, 24, who was fatally stabbed in a Wyndham Vale park in January 2025. Police arrested the group early on Wednesday, 21 October. Four adults will appear at Melbourne Magistrates' Court, and three teenagers will appear in a children's court. The stabbing followed a confrontation between Mr Atem's group and another group of men in a park on Haines Drive. Two of Mr Atem's friends were injured and taken to hospital.
The Victorian Government is using drones, long-range cameras and more officers to crack down on illegal dumping. The measures cover the Hume, Melton, Banyule and Greater Geelong council areas. Advanced drones can detect rubbish under vegetation and buried waste, while sniffer drones detect gases. Cameras can capture footage of trucks up to a kilometre away. Offenders face fines of up to about $800,000 or five years in prison.
House prices across Melton and Moorabool were mixed in the October quarter, according to data from the Real Estate Institute of Victoria. Diggers Rest recorded the strongest growth, rising 7.1 per cent to a median of $663,000, while Burnside fell 17.5 per cent to $800,000. Trentham remained Moorabool's most expensive township at $1.1 million. Across regional Victoria, house prices rose 1.2 per cent to $673,500. REIV chief executive Toby Balazs said the market was holding up well despite federal tax changes and recent cash rate rises.
Four Victorian councils will work with the state's Illegal Waste Dumping Taskforce to target dumping hotspots. Hume, Banyule, Melton and Greater Geelong will use drones, surveillance cameras and extra officers to identify offenders. The Environment Protection Authority is also deploying drones that detect gases. The taskforce has issued 22 clean-up orders and identified 18 new leads. Convicted individuals can face fines of about $800,000 or five years' imprisonment. Victorian Minister for Environment Jaclyn Symes said the new technology makes it harder for dumpers to hide.
The City of Greater Geelong is joining a Victorian state taskforce to target illegal dumping hotspots. The $21.5 million taskforce uses drones with sensors that can find rubbish hidden under vegetation or buried underground, along with long-range cameras. Environment Minister Jaclyn Symes said the technology would help catch offenders. Greater Geelong has received more than 6,600 requests to remove dumped rubbish in 2024-25, a figure that has risen each year since 2021. Individuals face fines of up to about $800,000 or five years in prison, and businesses face penalties of up to $3.95 million.
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry left an open practice on Sunday after appearing to hurt his right knee. Coach Steve Kerr later said the injury was to Curry's right ankle, not his knee, and that Curry is fine. Curry was injured while trying to shake off defenders and planted his right foot awkwardly. The Warriors open their regular season against the Lakers on October 21, and Curry's status will be monitored before that game.
The Victorian government is deploying drones, long-range cameras and extra enforcement officers to target illegal rubbish dumping in four council areas. Hume, Banyule, Melton and Greater Geelong councils will work with the $21.5 million Illegal Waste Dumping Taskforce. Environment Minister Jaclyn Symes says the operation will help track down offenders. Businesses can face fines of up to $3.95 million, while individuals face penalties of up to approximately $800,000 or five years' imprisonment, depending on the offence.
Victoria's Labor Party has promised to cap public transport fares at $30 a week for full fare holders and $15 a week for concession card users if re-elected in November. The two-year policy, costing $206 million, aims to save commuters up to $1400 annually. Existing free travel for under 18s and seniors on weekends will continue, with changes taking effect in January 2025. The announcement follows a previous fare surcharge apology and a $1.7 billion Coalition pledge for new trains in Melbourne's western suburbs.
Jay-Z will headline the Super Bowl 61 halftime show, the NFL announced on Monday, ending months of speculation about the performer. The 56-year-old rapper, whose company Roc Nation partners with the league on the event, has previously dismissed the idea of playing the halftime slot. Other proposed picks include 4:44 and Holy Grail with Justin Timberlake. The writer says Otis and 99 Problems have a less certain chance of inclusion.
Property records show the Henley Beach home of MasterChef star Laura Sharrad and her husband Max has sold for $1.891 million. The buyers paid $97,835 in stamp duty. The circa 1915 character home at 17 Anthony St had a price guide of $1.8 million when it went on the market in July. The couple, who co-own two Adelaide restaurants, plan to move to the Adelaide Hills. The home went under contract after the scheduled August auction was called in early in favour of best and final offers.
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Adelaide's Deepavali Festival will return to the Adelaide Showground at Wayville on Saturday 7 November. The event, organised by the Hindu Council of Australia's South Australian chapter, runs from 12.30pm to 10.30pm. The program includes cultural performances, a Ram Leela presentation, a Lakshmi Ganesh Maha Aarti and the burning of a 35-foot Ravan effigy with fireworks. Entry costs $20 per person, while children under 12 and seniors attend for free. The festival is supported by the South Australian Government and is open to people of all backgrounds.
Agents in South Australia's South East say more than half of their recent property sales have gone to Victorian buyers. Mount Gambier director Jason Malseed said such sales were rare 15 to 20 years ago. He linked the rise to frustration with the Victorian government, including its land taxes. Ray White Mount Gambier principal Tahlia Gabrielli said retirees make up most Victorian arrivals. A recent survey ranked the Victorian Labor Party as the worst state government in the country.
A three-bedroom property at 20 East Ave, Northfield, failed to sell at auction last week despite earlier valuations above its $900,000 price guide. Selling agent Andrew Simpson of OC Real Estate said few inquiries came in and developers now think the Northfield market has become too hot. He said the number of people attending open homes has dropped sharply and buyers are cautious about whether prices have bottomed. The house was extensively damaged by vandals and squatters, whom police had to evict. The property is now back on the market via private treaty at $900,000.
Owners of the $2,000 iPhone Duo say their screens are failing, with unusual resistance and a clicking sound when the device closes. Teardown work using CT scans by iFixit points to a narrowed section of the hinge below the ribbon cable. The support bar there may stop the hinge dropping far enough, stressing the OLED panel. Apple has not yet commented. Samsung faced similar early display damage with its original Galaxy Fold in 2019, which it addressed by redesigning the hinge.
Farmers and residents in the Adelaide Hills are fiercely opposing a proposed multibillion-dollar data centre at Tungkillo, east of Adelaide. Developer Quantum DC plans a 1200-megawatt facility across a 220-hectare site, with infrastructure on about 120 hectares and the rest kept for grazing. Locals fear harm to livestock, pollinators and the natural environment. They object to the proposed 15-day public submission period under the state's Essential Infrastructure assessment process and have started a petition. Quantum DC says environmental and heritage studies are underway to minimise impacts.
Adelaide businessman Rob Cammarano says organised crime figures are trying to force him out of Career Boss, a labour-hire firm recruiting workers for the $15.4 billion Torrens to Darlington project. He says his home was shot at and his businesses were targeted in arson attacks. Police taskforce Operation Endurance is investigating, with detectives believing those responsible took direction from senior underworld figures. The allegations were referred to the project team, which found no evidence of criminal involvement. The state's anti-corruption commission will evaluate the Infrastructure and Transport Department.
A jury has been told that an alleged murder victim may have died from a broken heart after learning she would move to a nursing home. Raelene Polymiadis, 66, is on trial in South Australia's Supreme Court, pleading not guilty to murdering her parents by injecting them with her own insulin in 2022 and 2023. Prosecutor Michael Foundas said she poisoned them to death. In her final address, defence barrister Marie Shaw KC argued the prosecution had not excluded that the couple chose to end their lives, and that Brenda Anderson may have died from heart failure.
Long-held Australian properties are reaching the market for the first time in decades as senior owners sell or pass homes to family. Raine & Horne Group executive chairman Angus Raine said intergenerational wealth transfer is creating rare buying opportunities. In Adelaide, a 92-year-old woman's Devon Park home sold at auction this month. A Parafield Gardens property on a 2313sqm block was listed for the first time in more than 60 years. Two country estates in NSW, owned by one family for over 30 years, have also been listed for sale.
Every murder-suicide examined in South Australia over a 20-year period occurred within a domestic relationship, new Adelaide University research has found. Women made up eight of the 10 victims. Researchers reviewed 363 adult homicide cases recorded between 2003 and 2022, and nine of the 10 victims were killed by an intimate partner. Researchers say the findings raise questions about how authorities identify and respond to warning signs. The researchers caution that the small number of cases limits the conclusions that can be drawn across the state.
