EMERGENCY REPORT
The Dubbo Photo News column dedicated to the hard work of our emergency services personnel.
Alleged vandal charged
ON the evening of June 16, several motor vehicles were broken into within the Baradine township and now police are pleased to be able to tell the community an alleged offender has since been located and charged.
A number of items have been recovered and police are seeking out people who may have had items stolen from their vehicles.
If you have any information or footage relating to this matter, please contact Coonabarabran Police on 6842 7299.
Roos on roads
EVERY 90 minutes, on average, a driver in Australia collides with a kangaroo and Dubbo is the state’s number one hotspot when it comes to wildlife collisions.
Here are some incredible statistics when it comes to cars colliding with animals.
According to data compiled by insurance giants NRMA and AAMI, in 2019 there were 236 vehicle v wildlife collisions in and around Dubbo, 162 in Armidale and 136 in Mudgee.
In 2018, Dubbo stood at 261, Goulburn was in second place with 176 and Mudgee was again third at 148.
2017 was a bit kinder to drivers and animals, with Dubbo seeing 197 such collisions, Mudgee 143 and Goulburn 123.
2016 was also down, Dubbo stood at 161 for the year, Goulburn 123 and Mudgee 98.
What this means if you’re driving around Dubbo is to be careful on our roads.
July and August are the danger months so with July having just started, thankfully – to begin putting the second half of a dreadful 2020 behind us – please exert more than normal care while behind the wheel, especially around dawn and dusk when ‘roos seem more anxious to hop out of scrub on roadside verges to cross the road.
International travel is currently banned for all practical purposes so we may see many city-siders making the trek out west, it’ll be interesting to see how that goes.
New Wello CCTV rolls out
GREAT to see 44 new CCTV cameras installed around Wellington’s CBD. That, coming on top of the recent drug busts in the town.
Hopefully it’ll help keep some of the local crooks a bit more honest than normal.
Three levels of government contributed to the project with Federal MP Andrew Gee saying he was pleased to see the project go ahead.
“The Australian Government is always looking for ways to increase community safety and security. CCTV cameras are just one of the ways we can deter people from doing the wrong thing in our local community. It also helps us nab offenders when crimes are committed,” Mr Gee said.
“I’d like to give a big shout-out to our police, who helped determine the best locations to place the cameras to provide maximum benefit for our community,” Mr Gee said.
The new and upgraded camera network now provides a key link between the Dubbo and Wellington Police, with the camera feed streaming live from Wellington streets to the Dubbo Police Station 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“I’ve been hearing from some Wellington residents that drug supply options have been re-established in the town. My fingers are crossed that police still have plenty of arrests to make in this ongoing operation,” Mr Gee said.
But what we really need is a far greater presence of local cops in the town, on the beat and embedded in the community 24/7 – just like these new cameras.
Collins Avenue house up in flames
FIRIES from Dubbo 280 station rushed to a Collins Avenue house just after 5.30am on Saturday, June 27, when reports came in that a house was well alight.
They extinguished the blaze and ascertained no-one was inside at the time, but the house was extensively damaged.
The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
Alleged fish poachers charged
AN illegal fisher has been apprehended during a weekend operation near Warren which was a joint effort between NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Fisheries officers and NSW Police Rural Crime Unit.
Acting Director NSWDPI Fisheries
Compliance, Dr Andrew Moriarty said, said two men, a 49-yearold from Dubbo and a 58-year-old from Wongarbon, were apprehended on Saturday, June 27, on the Macquarie River, downstream of Warren following covert surveillance of the alleged offender.
“The ongoing investigation focussed on the use of setlines, and illegal fish traps and officers observed the men using a number of illegal fish traps from their camp at the river,” Dr Moriarty said.
“The men were seen to take nine Golden Perch and one Murray Cod, and were apprehended by NSW Fisheries officers with the assistance of NSW Police Rural Crime Investigator officers.
“Seven fish traps, nine Golden perch, one Murray cod, one grapnel (grappling hook) as well as one of the offenders’ boat, motor and trailer were all seized during the operation.
“The men are both facing proposed charges under the Fisheries Management Act 1994 for unlawfully using traps and possessing fish illegally taken. The man from Dubbo is also facing an extra charge of failing to prevent fisheries offences while master of the boat – the maximum penalty for each offence is $22,000 and/or six months imprisonment.”
Dr Moriarty said the man is known to NSW DPI fisheries officers.
“Blatant disregard for fisheries rules and regulations have serious consequences,” he said.
“Fisheries rules and regulations are in place to protect and conserve fish stocks and fishing opportunities for current and future generations, and this type of illegal fishing detracts from all the hard work fisheries officers and the community do to ensure access to healthy fish stocks for the community of NSW.”
To report illegal fishing you can call the Fishers Watch phone line on 1800 043 536 or report online via the Fishsmart NSW app or at www.dpi. nsw.gov.au.
Well done to all concerned – so much work is going into building up native habitat and fish stocks that this alleged poaching is the last thing our poor old rivers need.
Keep Kids off Adult Sized Quad Bikes
THAT’S the call from rural crime police who are passing on the concerns of Safework NSW.
One in 10 child deaths involve a quadbike, which places it as the second leading agent cause of death after drowning.
No child under 16 should ride or be a passenger on adult sized quad bikes, police say.
I love quad bikes and I’ve had more than my fair share of luck not to have been seriously injured, or worse, on quads, but when it comes to kids, I really don’t want to have to do any more reports on them being killed on four-wheelers.
Cattle duffers
POLICE from the Walgett Rural Crime Prevention Team are appealing for information in relation to cattle stolen from a property on Brewarrina Road, Walgett.
Between March 31 and May 14, a total of 29 mixed breed heifers were stolen from the property. Police say the cattle had an average weight of 250kg and had pink management tags in their nearside ears.
Anyone with information about the theft is urged to contact Walgett Rural Crime Investigators on (02) 6820 3999 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Missing cattle at Clandulla
RURAL Crime Investigators from Mudgee are investigating the loss of a few cattle from a property on the Brogans Creek Road, Clandulla, including three Murray Grey Cows, one brown steer, a brown six-year-old cow, a two-year-old heifer and four calves, two black, two brown.
The cattle were last seen by the owner on April 7 this year and it’s believed they walked through a damaged fence into a quarry area on Brogans Road.
If anyone can assist police in respect to this incident or you believe you know the whereabouts of this stock, please contact the Rural Crime Investigator at Mudgee Police Station on 02 63728530 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Drugs allegedly found in speeding car
ON the evidence alleged just below, it doesn’t look like it pays to speed.
On June 26, highway police say they detected a Ford Falcon sedan allegedly travelling at 163km/h in a 100km/h zone on the Castlereagh Highway near Walgett.
The officers stopped the car and spoke to the 31-year-old female driver, who was accompanied by a 51-year-old man.
During a search of the vehicle officers allegedly located and seized syringes containing a clear liquid suspected to be methamphetamine, as well as 456 grams of cannabis in a garbage bag.
The pair were arrested and taken to Walgett Police Station.
The man was charged with two counts of possess prohibited plant and supply prohibited drug.
He is due to appear at Walgett Local Court on Sunday, June 28.
The driver was released without charge and issued an infringement for motor vehicle exceed speed limit over 45km/h. Her licence was also suspended.
Woman extradited from New Zealand over the 2016 alleged murder of Robert Dickie
POLICE last week travelled to New Zealand to extradite a woman over the alleged murder of a man from the state’s Central West four years ago.
Robert Dickie, aged 71, was last seen leaving his Elong Elong home on Tuesday, June 14, 2016.
His family reported him missing two days later and inquiries were commenced by detectives from Orana Mid-western Police District under Strike Force Gavin.
During the course of the investigation, detectives determined that Mr Dickie had been murdered. Despite a number of forensic searches, his body has not yet been located.
Following extensive inquiries, Strike Force Gavin officers applied for and were granted an arrest warrant for a woman in September 2017.
After inquiries revealed the now 47-year-old woman was living in New Zealand, detectives requested assistance from New Zealand Police, who arrested her at a home unit in Auckland on Tuesday, April 7.
The woman was taken to Auckland Police Station and processed on the NSW arrest warrant, before appearing at Auckland District Court, where her extradition to NSW was approved pending travel restrictions under COVID-19.
Earlier this week, detectives from Orana Mid-western Police District travelled to Auckland and, after being granted clearance for the extradition, escorted the woman on a flight, and arrived at Sydney International Airport about 10.45am on Thursday, June 25.
Due to the current Public Health Orders for returning international travellers, the woman was detained at the airport while the arrest warrant was executed, and she was charged with murder.
She was refused bail and appeared via audio visual link (AVL) to Central Local Court.
The woman was remanded in custody and will next appear at Dubbo Local Court on Wednesday, August 19.