Latest news with #LocalCourt
The Advertiser
5 days ago
- The Advertiser
Woman in court over tragic fatal pedestrian accident at Stroud Showground
A WOMAN, 68, accused of causing a tragic fatal pedestrian accident at the Stroud Showground in the build up to the close-knit country town's annual show has had her matter mentioned in court for the first time. Valerie Ann Munro was allegedly behind the wheel of a car that struck two women - aged 72 and 82 - at the showground on Cowper Street about 1.30pm on April 24. Port Stephens-Hunter police said they were called to the showground after reports of a crash and paramedics treated the two injured pedestrians at the scene before the 82-year-old woman was taken to John Hunter Hospital in a critical condition. Ms Munro was taken to Maitland Hospital for mandatory testing. Police say they established a crime scene and commenced inquiries into the circumstances of the crash before being notified about 9.30pm on April 25 that the 82-year-old woman had died in hospital. The Stroud community were rocked by the "freak accident" and at the time of the tragedy had been preparing for the annual Stroud Show, which ran from April 25 to 27. Following further inquires by Port-Stephens Hunter police, Mrs Munro went to Maitland police station on May 7 and was issued a future court attendance notice for a charge of negligent driving occasioning death. The matter was mentioned for the first time in Raymond Terrace Local Court on Monday. Ms Munro did not enter a plea and the matter was adjourned until July 28. A WOMAN, 68, accused of causing a tragic fatal pedestrian accident at the Stroud Showground in the build up to the close-knit country town's annual show has had her matter mentioned in court for the first time. Valerie Ann Munro was allegedly behind the wheel of a car that struck two women - aged 72 and 82 - at the showground on Cowper Street about 1.30pm on April 24. Port Stephens-Hunter police said they were called to the showground after reports of a crash and paramedics treated the two injured pedestrians at the scene before the 82-year-old woman was taken to John Hunter Hospital in a critical condition. Ms Munro was taken to Maitland Hospital for mandatory testing. Police say they established a crime scene and commenced inquiries into the circumstances of the crash before being notified about 9.30pm on April 25 that the 82-year-old woman had died in hospital. The Stroud community were rocked by the "freak accident" and at the time of the tragedy had been preparing for the annual Stroud Show, which ran from April 25 to 27. Following further inquires by Port-Stephens Hunter police, Mrs Munro went to Maitland police station on May 7 and was issued a future court attendance notice for a charge of negligent driving occasioning death. The matter was mentioned for the first time in Raymond Terrace Local Court on Monday. Ms Munro did not enter a plea and the matter was adjourned until July 28. A WOMAN, 68, accused of causing a tragic fatal pedestrian accident at the Stroud Showground in the build up to the close-knit country town's annual show has had her matter mentioned in court for the first time. Valerie Ann Munro was allegedly behind the wheel of a car that struck two women - aged 72 and 82 - at the showground on Cowper Street about 1.30pm on April 24. Port Stephens-Hunter police said they were called to the showground after reports of a crash and paramedics treated the two injured pedestrians at the scene before the 82-year-old woman was taken to John Hunter Hospital in a critical condition. Ms Munro was taken to Maitland Hospital for mandatory testing. Police say they established a crime scene and commenced inquiries into the circumstances of the crash before being notified about 9.30pm on April 25 that the 82-year-old woman had died in hospital. The Stroud community were rocked by the "freak accident" and at the time of the tragedy had been preparing for the annual Stroud Show, which ran from April 25 to 27. Following further inquires by Port-Stephens Hunter police, Mrs Munro went to Maitland police station on May 7 and was issued a future court attendance notice for a charge of negligent driving occasioning death. The matter was mentioned for the first time in Raymond Terrace Local Court on Monday. Ms Munro did not enter a plea and the matter was adjourned until July 28. A WOMAN, 68, accused of causing a tragic fatal pedestrian accident at the Stroud Showground in the build up to the close-knit country town's annual show has had her matter mentioned in court for the first time. Valerie Ann Munro was allegedly behind the wheel of a car that struck two women - aged 72 and 82 - at the showground on Cowper Street about 1.30pm on April 24. Port Stephens-Hunter police said they were called to the showground after reports of a crash and paramedics treated the two injured pedestrians at the scene before the 82-year-old woman was taken to John Hunter Hospital in a critical condition. Ms Munro was taken to Maitland Hospital for mandatory testing. Police say they established a crime scene and commenced inquiries into the circumstances of the crash before being notified about 9.30pm on April 25 that the 82-year-old woman had died in hospital. The Stroud community were rocked by the "freak accident" and at the time of the tragedy had been preparing for the annual Stroud Show, which ran from April 25 to 27. Following further inquires by Port-Stephens Hunter police, Mrs Munro went to Maitland police station on May 7 and was issued a future court attendance notice for a charge of negligent driving occasioning death. The matter was mentioned for the first time in Raymond Terrace Local Court on Monday. Ms Munro did not enter a plea and the matter was adjourned until July 28.
The Age
12-06-2025
- The Age
Alleged gangland supremo escaped brazen shooting by minutes
The Sydney home of the man police allege is the head of the notorious Alameddine crime network in Australia was peppered with bullets minutes after he left to ask a magistrate to allow him to relocate. Ali Elmoubayed was en route to Parramatta Local Court around 9.15am on Thursday when gunmen opened fire on his Merrylands home in the city's west. Shortly after, a burnt-out Porsche, suspected to be linked to the shooting, was found on Beverley Crescent in Chester Hill. No one was at the Earl Street home, which Elmoubayed had left five minutes earlier, at the time of the shooting. Shortly after, police arrested three men, who had allegedly fled the Chester Hill crime scene in a Hyundai. They were arrested on McMahon Road in Yagoona after allegedly trying to flee police on foot. They have not been charged. Crime scenes have been established in Merrylands and Chester Hill. Taskforce Falcon, established last month after a number of underworld-linked killings, is investigating the shooting. Elmoubayed, a former bodyguard to Rafat Alameddine, was set to appear in court to seek a variation to his bail that would allow him to relocate from the Earl Street home because of concerns for his safety. Other incidents at Elmoubayed's home in recent weeks, including a firebombing, have sparked security concerns. Alameddine, the alleged kingpin of the crime family, has been living in Lebanon as a free man since fleeing Australia in November 2022. Police believe Alameddine and John Bayssari were part of the criminal conspiracy to murder their gangland enemy Ibrahem Hamze in August 2021.
Sydney Morning Herald
12-06-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
Alleged gangland supremo escaped brazen shooting by minutes
The Sydney home of the man police allege is the head of the notorious Alameddine crime network in Australia was peppered with bullets minutes after he left to ask a magistrate to allow him to relocate. Ali Elmoubayed was en route to Parramatta Local Court around 9.15am on Thursday when gunmen opened fire on his Merrylands home in the city's west. Shortly after, a burnt-out Porsche, suspected to be linked to the shooting, was found on Beverley Crescent in Chester Hill. No one was at the Earl Street home, which Elmoubayed had left five minutes earlier, at the time of the shooting. Shortly after, police arrested three men, who had allegedly fled the Chester Hill crime scene in a Hyundai. They were arrested on McMahon Road in Yagoona after allegedly trying to flee police on foot. They have not been charged. Crime scenes have been established in Merrylands and Chester Hill. Taskforce Falcon, established last month after a number of underworld-linked killings, is investigating the shooting. Elmoubayed, a former bodyguard to Rafat Alameddine, was set to appear in court to seek a variation to his bail that would allow him to relocate from the Earl Street home because of concerns for his safety. Other incidents at Elmoubayed's home in recent weeks, including a firebombing, have sparked security concerns. Alameddine, the alleged kingpin of the crime family, has been living in Lebanon as a free man since fleeing Australia in November 2022. Police believe Alameddine and John Bayssari were part of the criminal conspiracy to murder their gangland enemy Ibrahem Hamze in August 2021.
The Advertiser
11-06-2025
- The Advertiser
Woman hauled in on warrant said she 'looked too ugly' to come to court
A WOMAN who was hauled to court on an arrest warrant for failing to show up a week earlier has told a Newcastle magistrate she did not attend because she "looked too ugly" and "felt sick". Emily Edwards, 31, was convicted in her absence last week and had a warrant put out for her arrest on a charge of driving while disqualified while on an Intensive Corrections Order for other matters. Magistrate Caleb Franklin said the incident marked the "eighth time" she had been caught driving unlicensed. "I looked too ugly to come and I felt sick," Edwards, from Salamander Bay, told Magistrate Franklin as she sat in the dock at Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday. Edwards had been arrested earlier that same morning. "I'm starving," she said. The court heard Edwards had three children under the age of 10 in her Toyota Corolla, which she has since sold, when she was pulled over by police on Glebe Road, at Hamilton South, at 7.20am on March 14. Magistrate Franklin said police stopped Edwards due to her manner of driving after they observed her "swaying in between lanes". At the time, Edwards had already been disqualified from driving in February for three months. Magistrate Franklin confirmed his earlier guilty conviction, sentenced Edwards to a community corrections order for one year and disqualified her from driving for a further six months. "Just make sure you have a licence before you hop behind the wheel of a car," he said. "Make sure you have arrangements in place, don't even have access to keys because you have repeatedly shown you can't resist that temptation." Magistrate Franklin said Edwards had a "significant" criminal and traffic offence history, and news that she had sold the car should "lessen" the risk of her committing further offences. The court heard the matter was Edwards' second conviction for driving disqualified in the past five years. A WOMAN who was hauled to court on an arrest warrant for failing to show up a week earlier has told a Newcastle magistrate she did not attend because she "looked too ugly" and "felt sick". Emily Edwards, 31, was convicted in her absence last week and had a warrant put out for her arrest on a charge of driving while disqualified while on an Intensive Corrections Order for other matters. Magistrate Caleb Franklin said the incident marked the "eighth time" she had been caught driving unlicensed. "I looked too ugly to come and I felt sick," Edwards, from Salamander Bay, told Magistrate Franklin as she sat in the dock at Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday. Edwards had been arrested earlier that same morning. "I'm starving," she said. The court heard Edwards had three children under the age of 10 in her Toyota Corolla, which she has since sold, when she was pulled over by police on Glebe Road, at Hamilton South, at 7.20am on March 14. Magistrate Franklin said police stopped Edwards due to her manner of driving after they observed her "swaying in between lanes". At the time, Edwards had already been disqualified from driving in February for three months. Magistrate Franklin confirmed his earlier guilty conviction, sentenced Edwards to a community corrections order for one year and disqualified her from driving for a further six months. "Just make sure you have a licence before you hop behind the wheel of a car," he said. "Make sure you have arrangements in place, don't even have access to keys because you have repeatedly shown you can't resist that temptation." Magistrate Franklin said Edwards had a "significant" criminal and traffic offence history, and news that she had sold the car should "lessen" the risk of her committing further offences. The court heard the matter was Edwards' second conviction for driving disqualified in the past five years. A WOMAN who was hauled to court on an arrest warrant for failing to show up a week earlier has told a Newcastle magistrate she did not attend because she "looked too ugly" and "felt sick". Emily Edwards, 31, was convicted in her absence last week and had a warrant put out for her arrest on a charge of driving while disqualified while on an Intensive Corrections Order for other matters. Magistrate Caleb Franklin said the incident marked the "eighth time" she had been caught driving unlicensed. "I looked too ugly to come and I felt sick," Edwards, from Salamander Bay, told Magistrate Franklin as she sat in the dock at Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday. Edwards had been arrested earlier that same morning. "I'm starving," she said. The court heard Edwards had three children under the age of 10 in her Toyota Corolla, which she has since sold, when she was pulled over by police on Glebe Road, at Hamilton South, at 7.20am on March 14. Magistrate Franklin said police stopped Edwards due to her manner of driving after they observed her "swaying in between lanes". At the time, Edwards had already been disqualified from driving in February for three months. Magistrate Franklin confirmed his earlier guilty conviction, sentenced Edwards to a community corrections order for one year and disqualified her from driving for a further six months. "Just make sure you have a licence before you hop behind the wheel of a car," he said. "Make sure you have arrangements in place, don't even have access to keys because you have repeatedly shown you can't resist that temptation." Magistrate Franklin said Edwards had a "significant" criminal and traffic offence history, and news that she had sold the car should "lessen" the risk of her committing further offences. The court heard the matter was Edwards' second conviction for driving disqualified in the past five years. A WOMAN who was hauled to court on an arrest warrant for failing to show up a week earlier has told a Newcastle magistrate she did not attend because she "looked too ugly" and "felt sick". Emily Edwards, 31, was convicted in her absence last week and had a warrant put out for her arrest on a charge of driving while disqualified while on an Intensive Corrections Order for other matters. Magistrate Caleb Franklin said the incident marked the "eighth time" she had been caught driving unlicensed. "I looked too ugly to come and I felt sick," Edwards, from Salamander Bay, told Magistrate Franklin as she sat in the dock at Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday. Edwards had been arrested earlier that same morning. "I'm starving," she said. The court heard Edwards had three children under the age of 10 in her Toyota Corolla, which she has since sold, when she was pulled over by police on Glebe Road, at Hamilton South, at 7.20am on March 14. Magistrate Franklin said police stopped Edwards due to her manner of driving after they observed her "swaying in between lanes". At the time, Edwards had already been disqualified from driving in February for three months. Magistrate Franklin confirmed his earlier guilty conviction, sentenced Edwards to a community corrections order for one year and disqualified her from driving for a further six months. "Just make sure you have a licence before you hop behind the wheel of a car," he said. "Make sure you have arrangements in place, don't even have access to keys because you have repeatedly shown you can't resist that temptation." Magistrate Franklin said Edwards had a "significant" criminal and traffic offence history, and news that she had sold the car should "lessen" the risk of her committing further offences. The court heard the matter was Edwards' second conviction for driving disqualified in the past five years.
7NEWS
05-06-2025
- 7NEWS
Man accused of using AI images of women for sextortion
A man accused of threatening to post AI-manipulated images online in the sextortion of three women has appeared in court for the first time. Benjamin Michael Jomaa is accused of sending sexual material to the women without their consent on Facebook messenger and threatening to distribute AI-manipulated images of them online. The 31-year-old allegedly demanded to be sent more intimate pictures and encouraged one of the women to participate in a sexual act without her consent. Sexual extortion or 'sextortion' is a form of blackmail where a person threatens to share a nude or sexual image or video unless their victim gives in to their demands. Police searched Jomaa's home on May 28 at Ettalong Beach on the NSW Central Coast and seized several electronic devices. He was arrested and charged with 13 offences. The three women, all aged in their 20s, were allegedly abused by Jomaa online between October 2024 and April 2025. Jomaa was granted bail after the arrest. He appeared briefly in Gosford Local Court for the first time on Wednesday, represented by his lawyer Jessica Tohi. Supported by two people, Jomaa walked out of the court building hidden underneath a coat. He has been excused from attending court when the matter returns in two weeks and will remain on bail.
