A New Zealand national has been charged with attempting to import about 2kg of heroin in his luggage through Melbourne International Airport.
The man, 77, faced Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday and was remanded in custody.
Australian Border Force officers (ABF) examined the man’s luggage after he had arrived on a flight from Thailand and allegedly found white powder in the lining of his suitcase.
The substance tested positive for heroin.
The maximum penalty for this offence is life imprisonment.
Australian Federal Police (AFP) detective acting superintendent Amanda Glover said the AFP works closely with its law enforcement partners to stop illicit drugs reaching Australian streets.
“Drug traffickers prey on our community, causing drug-related crime and the associated health and social costs,” she said.
“Every detection of drugs at the border keeps our community safer and ensure that drug traffickers cannot reap profits by preying on Australians.”
ABF superintendent Kelly-anne Parish said ABF officers are highly skilled and are always on alert to detect and stop the importation of illicit substances coming into Australia.
“Criminals will try to hide illicit drugs in a variety of ways, however no matter the amount of drugs that are hidden, big or small, our officers have the technology and expertise to find them,” she said.
“This is a good example of the real-time capabilities of our officers working at the border, 24 hours a day, to protect the Australian community from harmful drugs.
“The ABF and AFP work hard to protect the Australian community from the scourge of drugs and ensure airports are not part of the illicit supply chain.”
A composer who wrote one of the few acclaimed Tongan songs about the fatal sinking of the ill-fated Princess Ashika said he still stood by the lyrics of his song.
Tali Kinikini. Photo/Supplied
Tali Kinikini criticised the then government in his song for purchasing the doomed ferry which sank to the bottom of the ocean in August 5, 2009, killing 74 people. Only two bodies were recovered, with 72 missing including 68 passengers, four crew and five foreign nationals. Of the missing passengers, two remain unidentified.
The report of the Royal Commission into the disaster said the “evidence as to the unseaworthiness and appalling state of the vessel is overwhelming and compelling.”
The then government of Prime Minister Feleti Sevele was accused of showing a lack of any official due diligence in purchasing the ferry.
Kinikini said after the release of the song the Tonga Broadcasting Commission pulled it off air.
The broadcaster later asked him on the first anniversary of the tragedy to remove a line which said, in Tongan, the government was purchasing a coffin. Kinikini refused the request.
The TBC could not be reached for comment.
Some other strong words in the song included telling the government the victims and their families could not do anything after its bad decision to buy the 37-year-old, unseaworthy ferry.
The song poetically said these people decided to leave it to God to judge them, an usual Tongan curse which is the same as telling the accused they have yet to be judged here in the world, but will face a severe punishment from God.
It was a reference to some of the government leaders especially Prime Minister Sevele who was not taken to court over the disaster.
‘Ikai mea’i he pule’anga ni The government never knew
Ko e kofini e fu’u vaka ni It had purchased a coffin
To tau ai si’ono kakai It killed the government’s people
O fonualoto he kilisitahi And the ocean became their grave
Si’ete hanu ni tuku kia hai Oh who could hear my complaint
Kae taumaia ‘e toe mafai I have no control over it
A e ipu vai kuo mahua ni The cup has been spilled out
E toe lava hano tānaki It could not be collected
Tuku ai ā kia Satai Just leave it to Jehovah
E totongi ‘o ‘etau angafai To judge the decision we made
Kau tengihia pe mo te tangi While I lament and weep
I he hulufau hoku te’ia ni My smitten with the tragedy is overwhelming
‘Osi ‘eku tumu ho ta’e’ofa I am mystified by your unloving
E Pilinisesi ‘Asika Dear Princess Ashika
Ho’o puke tu’u ‘e te koloa’ You have held down my possession
He teau mita ‘o e moana Hundred metres under the ocean
E te mataika ‘ki he pupua’ I am seeing what I cannot possibly obtain
He manako maka ki Tofua Desiring to get what I cannot get from Tofua
Ikai ha ‘uta ‘ e hakea There is no escapable cliff
Te u vale au ia he ‘ofa I am overwhelmed with emotional love
Kinikini said he told the staff at the broadcaster the song was on YouTube and it was widely shared so he did not see why there was need to change his lyrics to suit their needs.
Kinikini said the song was later broadcast by the TBC.
A serial sex offender has been jailed for 13 years for sexually assaulting five victims ranged in age from 6 to their 40s.
David Allan Falamoe, 41, exploited the vulnerabilities of his victims, including a teenager, who he punched in the stomach when she told him she was pregnant, Stuff reported.
A woman in her 40s suffered increasingly degrading treatment. He had repeatedly asked for money until she had no more left to give.
A court adviser read the victim impact statements to Justice Francis Cooke during Falamoe’s sentencing at the High Court in Wellington on Friday.
The woman said she had cried a river over the wickedness he had put her through.
“I’m looking forward to better days, no more tears, just better days.”
The parents of the youngest victim called Falamoe scum for having indecently touched their 6-year-old daughter.
He was also found in the bed of a 9-year-old girl. He was caught before the girl woke. The girl’s mother said she was disgusted by what he did.
Falamoe pleaded guilty to a single charge of indecent assault and was found guilty of another two charges of rape, one of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection, two of attempted sexual violation, compelling an indecent act with a dog, committing two indecent acts, assault with intent to injure, and assaulting a female.
He was sentenced to 13 years’ jail and has to serve at least five years and six months before being considered for parole.
The judge said the five victims ranged in age from 6 to their 40s. Falamoe identified vulnerabilities and tried to exploit them.
A woman said she was a teenager when she met Falamoe. She was kicked and punched and forced to have sex with him.
When she told him she was pregnant he punched her in the stomach. The woman said she had a miscarriage.
A victim, who Falamoe touched indecently, said he was a sick and evil person who had ruined the start of their adulthood.
The Crown had asked for Falamoe to be sentenced to preventive detention – an open-ended jail term. Prosecutor Michele Wilkinson-Smith said he had 65 previous convictions, including 29 for violence mainly against intimate partners.
He had not responded to previous sentences, had no insight and no remorse. Preventive detention would protect the community, she said.
But defence lawyer John Gwilliam said Falamoe had a traumatic past, including abuse in state care, and had seen his father die in front of him. He had no history of sexual offending and should be given the benefit of the doubt in choosing a finite jail term instead of preventive detention.
Falamoe said he was a victim of false allegations.
The judge said each of the victims was vulnerable in their own way, Falamoe would get close to them and use psychological and physical violence.
But the judge said he was unable to conclude Falamoe qualified for preventive detention based on the risk he would likely pose at the end of a finite prison term.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has criticised what he called China’s “predatory” economic policies in the Pacific, but Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said he was not concerned about Tonga’s debt to China.
Secretary Blinken made the comments on Wednesday during a visit to Nuku’alofa where he marked the opening of a new US embassy.
Tonga owes $150 million to China, the equivalent of about 25 per cent of its gross domestic product.
Hon. Sovaleni said he was not concerned about the large amount of money his country had borrowed from China and that Tonga had started to pay back the debt.
Blinken met with the Prime Minister other officials to discuss the bilateral relationship as well as regional and global issues, said State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.
“President Biden is fully committed to working with Tonga, and with all Pacific Islands, to usher in an era of even closer collaboration to deliver on the issues that matter most to our people — rooted in mutual respect and mutual trust,” Blinken said.
The Prime Minister described Secretary Blinken’s visit as “historic.”
“It is the first visit by a sitting US Secretary of State to Tonga and the highest level visit we have received from the United States in our recent history,” he added.
“It is a clear indication to us of the desire and commitment by the United States to strengthen our relations. The United States and Kingdom of Tonga share a long-standing history and enduring partnership.”
Blinken said the United States did not object to nations in the region engaging with other countries, including China, but that there were concerns over Beijing’s “increasingly problematic behaviour.”
He accused China of asserting unlawful maritime claims, militarisation and investments that could undermine good governance and promote corruption.
Blinken also praised the return of Peace Corps volunteers, who left the island because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said the opening of the US embassy underlined the strength of America’s commitment to the people of Tonga.
The embassy would allow Washington to deploy additional diplomatic personnel and resources, including the potential appointment of a resident ambassador to Tonga.
The United States has had diplomatic relations with the kingdom since 1972.
For more information
The U.S. dedicates a new embassy in Tonga in a bid for more influence in the Pacific
The Court of Appeal has rejected an appeal by Feleti Ulakai over a ruling dismissing allegations of bribery during an election made against Paula Piveni Piukala.
Paula Piveni Piukala. Photo/Kaniva Tonga
On February 13, 2023, Judge Cooper dismissed a petition brought by Feleti Ulakai, challenging the election of Paula Piveni Piukala on November 3, 2022. Mr Ulakai was also ordered to pay the costs.
Ulakai subsequently appealed against those orders.
The appeal was heard by Judges Randerson, White and Morrison.
Ulakai alleged that Piukala committed bribery under Section 21 of the Electoral Act, which states that Every person commits the offence of bribery who, directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf gives any money or valuable gift to or for any elector, or to or for any other person on behalf of any elector or to or for any other person, in order to induce any elector to vote or refrain from voting.
In their summary of the case, the judges said Ulakai had to prove beyond reasonable doubt that money or a valuable gift was given (or offered) by Piukala directly, or indirectly by someone on his behalf; the money or gift was given (or offered) to an elector, namely a registered voter; or to another person on behalf of a registered voter, or to someone else; and the money or gift was given (or offered) in order to induce a registered voter to vote or refrain from voting
Ulakai alleged the following specified acts constituting bribery had occurred:
Someone giving money on Piukala’s behalf to electors of Tokomololo, Pea and Ha’ateiho; and someone gave a gift such as groceries on Piukala’s behalf to electors of Tokomololo, Pea and Ha’ateiho.
Ulakai alleged that the money giving occurred in this way:
On September 20, 2022, at the residence of Mr Fevaleaki, prizes were announced for three people participating in a poetry competition;
On October 28, 2022, at Ha’ateiho, prizes were given for participants in a poetry competition;
The prizes for poetry competitions were, in each case, from sponsors and on September 17, at the Ha’ateiho Golf Club, the respondent gave an envelope of money to Tevita ‘Eli and a person called Pita.
On October 8, 2022, two women distributed groceries to older people at Ha’ateiho, including the home of Mamata Kohinoa.
Except in the case of the money given by Piukala’s himself at the Golf Club, all other acts were of things done indirectly on his behalf.
The judges said that Ulakai added nothing of substance to his affidavit in oral evidence.
No evidence had been presented to show that an attempt had been made to verify the claims or to speak to the people involved in order to ascertain what had happened.
Nor had any effort been made to find out whether the recipients of any prize money felt bribed or induced to vote in a particular way.
Much was made of unverified social media posts and video as evidence, but these did not in themselves prove the essential elements of the allegations.
There was evidence that the groceries had come from the charity St Vincent de Paul.
“This was a case based on circumstantial evidence,” the judges said.
“All the witnesses gave evidence based on what they saw after the event on videos or photos taken from the videos.
“With the exception of Mr Ulakai having been present when the groceries were given, no witness was actually present at any relevant time.
“No recipient of a money prize or gift was called, no sponsor of the poetry prizes was called, and the MC was not called. In fact, no evidence was given by any attendee at the poetry competitions.”
The challenge to the appeal was dismissed with costs against Ulakai.
A Tongan man in Saratoga Springs, Utah, has been charged with 25 counts of burglary in connection with a string of vehicle break-ins that occurred in Provo and Eagle Mountain last month.
Mosiah Vae Taumoepeau, 20, was arrested after he was found with stolen property from the break-ins, including Apple Airpods, credit cards, gift cards, and $1,000.
He reportedly admitted to deputies that he had burglarized over 10 vehicles and “lost track of time because there were so many.”
Taumoepeau was being held in Utah County Jail without bail.
Utah news media reported that Taumoepeau told deputies he was “just walking around with no real direction,” according to court documents. When asked for identification, he reportedly handed a deputy a phone and wallet that did not belong to him. He was then handcuffed and detained, according to court documents.
After being read his Miranda rights, Taumoepeau told deputies he was in the Ridley’s parking lot “hitting glass,” according to the affidavit. Deputies asked what he meant and he reportedly said “car burglaries.”
Taumoepeau told deputies his intent was not to break into vehicles — that he was going for a walk and decided to start breaking in when he arrived in the parking lot, according to the probable cause statement. He broke into “approximately” seven vehicles, according to court documents.
Taumoepeau is facing 25 charges, including:
Two counts of attempted burglary of a vehicle, a class B misdemeanor
Manufacture/possession of burglary tools, a class B misdemeanor
12 counts of burglary of a vehicle, a class A misdemeanor
Two counts of theft of a value less than $500, a class B misdemeanor
Five counts of unlawful acquire/posses/transfer of financial card, a third degree felony
Unlawful possession of ID, a third degree felony
Property damage/destruction of less than $500, a class B misdemeanor
By Adam Burns, Reporter of RNZ and is republished with permission
Warning: This story contains distressing content that may upset some readers.
Lauren Dickason made online searches on how to cause child drug overdoses in the weeks leading up to the deaths of her three young daughters.
Lauren Anne Dickason in the High Court at Christchurch on 17 July 2023. Photo: Pool / NZME/ George Heard
Dickason, originally from South Africa, is on trial in Christchurch for the murder of her children, Maya, Karla and Liané, in September 2021.
She denies the charges, arguing insanity and infanticide.
It was Dickason’s internet searches that were under the microscope in court on Monday.
“Search one is ‘alprazolam dose for children’, search term two is ‘ambien lethal dose’, ‘carbon monoxide death’ is search three, search four ‘children who bite’, search five ‘drugs to overdose kids’,” Detective Joshua Locke told the court.
Locke, from the police’s digital forensics team, was among the team who took the data from Dickason’s phone the day after her daughters died.
Those were among multiple web searches done around the time the three girls were killed, he said.
Most of the 12 searches happened in South Africa during July and August 2021, but some had been deleted by Dickason, limiting the data, said Locke.
“It cannot be determined what date and time the following searches were made: ‘Children who bite’, ‘fatal levels of ativan’, ‘how to deal with anxiety due to Covid’, ‘I hate what lockdown is making me’, ‘the worst pet as a child’,” he said.
But the defence said it was not clear what Dickason was thinking when these searches were made and some, such as ‘immigration stress’, were omitted entirely.
The defence entered their chosen messages from more than 135,000 present on Dickason’s phone into evidence on Monday. They mostly painted a picture of a hands-on mother, who enjoyed finding activities to do with her daughters, like arts and crafts, gymnastics and swimming.
She often messaged friends and family about what the girls were up to.
Detective Edward Mitchell read some to the court, including this one describing two-year-old twins, Maya and Karla: “Maya is the little mother, always helpful and peaceful and obedient. Karla is the firecracker. She can throw an amazing tantrum but is also loveable and talks a dog out of a bush.
“She and Liané are best friends. It’s so pretty. This is such a nice age – I wish they could stay this big forever.”
Lauren Dickason consistently updated family back in South Africa about her daughters. Photo: Supplied
Many messages had accompanying images or videos of the girls – including one which reads ‘my kids are crazy’, with a picture of all three in an outdoor pool in winter.
Dickason’s lawyer, Anne Toohey, said the pictures provide crucial context to the Crown’s sample of messages.
“There are literally hundreds of photos and videos that Dickason shares to WhatsApp groups of the twins and her daughter, Liané, playing and doing fun things. And you haven’t noted that anywhere in your evidence.”
As the family isolated and then flew to New Zealand, Dickason’s friends and family began to be concerned by the few messages they received.
Mitchell told the court Dickason replied reassuringly.
“Thank you friends. I promise when my inability to speak has passed and the absolute shock of everything that has happened has settled, we’ll FaceTime. I love you all so much,” Dickason wrote in August 2021.
Her communication faded rapidly in the final months the girls were alive, Toohey said.
“In July 2021, 2885 messages were sent from Lauren’s phone. In August 2021, the next month, it drops to 965,” she said.
“In September, acknowledging of course that this only encompasses the first 16 days in September, it drops again to 330 messages.”
The case continues on Tuesday.
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She then took another two weeks off over Parliament’s recess.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins spoke to Allan on 14 July after returning from his trip to Europe and confirmed then she would return to work.
“I’m pleased she is in a much better space after taking some time off and getting some professional support,” he said.
“Mental wellbeing should never be a source of shame or embarrassment. I commend Kiri for speaking publicly about her recent struggles and I’ve been resolutely committed to supporting her through that.”
Allan also issued a blanket apology to “anyone who has found my behaviour towards them unacceptable” and Hipkins said she would receive workplace coaching.
Last Monday, Hipkins told reporters he considered the matter closed.
“Kiri gave me some assurances that she feels well, she’s in a good space to come back to work, and certainly the conversations I’ve had with her over the last week or so, the last few days, give me confidence in that.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Allan acknowledged she had gone through “a bit of a rough time”.
“I’ve struggled with my mental health for a good part of my adult life. That’s something I try not to shy away from.”
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Tonga, New Zealand and Australia next week to discuss regional security and cooperation and attend the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the State Department said on Thursday.
Blinken plans to dedicate a new U.S. Embassy in Nukuʻalofa, Tonga, a Pacific island the United States considers strategically important amid efforts by China to expand its influence across the Pacific.
The United States has stepped up engagements with countries in the Pacific region as geostrategic competition with China intensifies.
President Joe Biden hosted a first ever summit in Washington with Pacific island leaders last September and reached an agreement this year with Britain and Australia to supply the latter with nuclear-powered submarines.
Biden has invited Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for a state visit later this year and will also host a second summit with leaders of Pacific island nations in September.
At last year’s summit, the U.S. pledged to help Pacific island leaders stave off China’s “economic coercion,” and to work harder with allies and partners to address islanders’ needs.
Blinken will travel to Wellington, New Zealand on July 27 to meet with senior government partners and attend the Women’s World Cup when the U.S. women’s team plays, the department said.
His trip will conclude on July 28-29 with a stop in Brisbane, Australia, where he will attend the annual meeting of U.S. and Australian defense and foreign ministers, known as AUSMIN.
The Tonga stop will be Blinken’s first there as secretary of state and his third to a Pacific island country, a State Department official told a briefing on the trip. It will be his 12th to the Indo-Pacific region as a whole since he became America’s top diplomat in January 2021, while he will be the first U.S. secretary of state to visit New Zealand since 2017.
The official said temporary U.S. duty officers were already in Tonga and a first directly assigned officer would be there “in a few short weeks,” with the intention being to have an ambassador resident there.
