Couple in court over massive drug haul

ACCUSED drug smugglers Ivan Valea and Julia Fernandez will front court at midday today after they were arrested in 2011 in one of Australia's biggest cocaine busts.

The couple will face Bundaberg Supreme Court charged with importing/exporting commercial quantities of border controlled drugs, alongside Jose Herrero-Calvo, 38, of Sydney, and Miguel Angel Sanchez Barrocal, 39, of the Gold Coast.

Valea, 35, and Ferrandez, 37, were arrested in October 2011 after police seized more than 300kg of cocaine worth up to $120 million hidden in the hull of their yacht.

The Friday Freedom, a 17m ketch, had been under surveillance since September 2011 as part of a 10-month investigation by Australian Federal Police.

The four Spaniards face life imprisonment if convicted.

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Teen in court over fatal NYE bashing

David Cassai's sister, Elisa, mother Caterina and an unidentified man outside Melbourne Magistrates' Court. Picture: Stuart Walmsley Source: Herald Sun

THE teenager accused of fatally bashing 22-year-old David Cassai on New Year's Eve appeared in a courtroom packed full of his alleged victim?s family and friends today.

About 30 friends and family of Mr Cassai - including his mother and two sisters - filled the courtroom, some of them staring at Dylan John Closter and two co-accused as they entered the room.

Mr Closter, 18, charged with manslaughter and affray over the death of the young Templestowe man, previously claimed he was attacked first.

Tyrone Russell, 21, and Thomas McCluskey, 25, were also charged over the fight at Rye, but not in relation to Mr Cassai's death.

Melbourne Magistrates' Court heard today there was strong evidence, including CCTV footage of Mr Closter’s group approaching Mr Cassai’s group, suggesting the accused men and their friends were the aggressors.

David Cassai.

Prosecutor Luke Exell said a committal hearing, where the strength of the prosecution evidence is tested, should be set down as early as possible on public policy grounds and because of concerns for Mr Cassai’s family.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Dan Muling chose the earliest available date, August 5, and said Mr Closter’s barrister could either make himself available or get his client new representation.

“This is a matter of great significance to many people who have been affected by this incident,” he said.

So far, 18 witnesses will be called to be cross-examined during the committal hearing, which is expected to take three weeks.

Dylan John Closter,18, outside Melbourne Magistrates' Court. Picture: Stuart Walmsley

Mr Muling said he would allow a witness to be cross-examined about which of the two groups started the fight.

Mr Exell said there was no use examining the man because he had said he cannot clearly see long distances and could not identify which group was which.

Four of Mr Cassai’s friends, who will be called as prosecution witnesses, were asked to leave court so they did not hear details of the evidence.

Throughout the mention, Mr Closter - a third-year apprentice plumber from Launching Place – kept his head down.

Thomas McCluskey, 25, outside Melbourne Magistrates' Court. Picture: Stuart Walmsley

The court previously heard CCTV footage showed friends of Mr Closter tried to restrain him moments before he fatally punched Mr Cassai.

Homicide squad Det-Sgt Sol Solomon said in January the footage showed Mr Closter falling and getting up from the ground, but did not show him being punched and kicked while on the ground, as he told police.

Mr Closter said he had had a few swigs of Galliano before the incident, but denied that he walked away from the unconscious man laughing and said, "That's what we're here for," the court heard.

Det-Sgt Solomon told the court it was unknown what sparked the argument between two groups of young men about 1am on December 31 on Point Nepean Rd.

Tyrone Russell, 21, outside Melbourne Magistrates' Court. Picture: Stuart Walmsley

He said the critical parts of the incident were captured on CCTV footage from two nearby cameras.

The court heard Mr Closter bumped Mr Cassai with his shoulder and then stood over him, as if to strike him, as he lay on the ground.

“CCTV footage clearly shows the accused here assaults Mr Cassai on three separate occasions and he appears to be focusing his aggression upon Mr Cassai and Mr Cassai alone,” Det-Sgt Solomon said.

He said a number of young men held Mr Closter back as he advanced on a retreating Mr Cassai, but he managed to break free and chased after him.

The footage shows Mr Cassai had his hands in front of him - in an attempt to defend himself or ward off the imminent attack - when Mr Closter delivered a “roundhouse style punch” to the right side of Mr Cassai’s head, the court heard.

“He falls straight to the ground backwards and we see his head hit the pavement and he lies completely still, he never moves,” Det-Sgt Solomon said.

He said Mr Cassai was airlifted to The Alfred hospital, but medical experts told police at 8am he had sustained an “unsurvivable head injury” with a “hopeless” prognosis.

He died about 4pm that day.

The court heard Mr Closter told police he and his friends had been to the Rye carnival when he saw a boy from Mr Cassai’s group remove a street sign and yelled out: ‘What do you think you’re doing, mate?"

Mr Closter said he was assaulted by a number of people and, after being knocked to the ground, instinctively struck out at the nearest person to him.

“He said he didn’t realise at the time he had seriously injured the boy that he punched,” Det-Sgt Solomon said.

Mr Russell, a West Australian man, was charged with affray and two counts of intentionally causing injury.

Mr McCluskey, of Kilsyth, was also charged with intentionally causing injury and affray.

Mr Closter and Mr McCluskey’s mention hearings were adjourned until May 10 because their legal representatives received required documentation from the prosecution recently.

Members of Mr Cassai’s family cried after the hearing and walked from the court, linking arms.

The bail conditions of the three accused were extended.
 

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Accused killer son appears in court

Wangaratta murdered couple Bill and Pauline Thomas were a quiet and loving couple well-regarded in the local community. Picture: Supplied Source: Supplied

A MAN accused of murdering his parents in their home near Wangaratta thanked a magistrate today after she noted he needed medication for anxiety.

Ian David Thomas, 35, of Balga in Western Australia, appeared briefly in Melbourne Magistrates' Court having been charged with the murders of Bill and Pauline Thomas.

Mr Thomas appeared in the court dock in a burgundy jumper and black pants.

He was sporting a slight graze to the left side of his face, which he told an earlier out-of-sessions hearing was caused during his arrest.

Police arrested Mr Thomas in Meredith, between Ballarat and Geelong, on Tuesday.

The bodies of Bill and Pauline Thomas were found in their home Monday night.

They were married for 40 years and were said to have been inseparable.

Prosecutor Patrick O'Halloran told the court investigators were seeking an extension of time to prepare the brief of evidence, which would be provided to Victoria Legal Aid on July 19.

Mr Thomas's lawyer told the court it was his first time in custody and he required diazepam for anxiety.

The magistrate noted his custody management issues.

"Thanks ma'am," he replied before being returned to the cells.

Mr Thomas will next appear in Wangaratta Magistrates' Court on September 5.

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Teen in court over fatal NYE bashing

David Cassai. Source: Supplied

THE teenager accused of fatally bashing 22-year-old David Cassai on New Year's Eve appeared in a courtroom packed full of his alleged victim?s family and friends today.

About 30 friends and family of Mr Cassai – including his mother and two sisters – filled the courtroom, some of them staring at Dylan John Closter and two co-accused as they entered the room.

Mr Closter, 18, charged with manslaughter and affray over the death of the young Templestowe man, previously claimed he was attacked first.

Tyrone Russell, 21, and Thomas McCluskey, 25, were also charged over the fight at Rye, but not in relation to Mr Cassai's death.

Melbourne Magistrates' Court heard today there was strong evidence, including CCTV footage of Mr Closter’s group approaching Mr Cassai’s group, suggesting the accused men and their friends were the aggressors.

Prosecutor Luke Exell said a committal hearing, where the strength of the prosecution evidence is tested, should be set down as early as possible on public policy grounds and because of concerns for Mr Cassai’s family.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Dan Muling chose the earliest available date, August 5, and said Mr Closter’s barrister could either make himself available or get his client new representation.

“This is a matter of great significance to many people who have been affected by this incident,” he said.

So far, 18 witnesses will be called to be cross-examined during the committal hearing, which is expected to take three weeks.

Mr Muling said he would allow a witness to be cross-examined about which of the two groups started the fight.

Mr Exell said there was no use examining the man because he had said he cannot clearly see long distances and could not identify which group was which.

Four of Mr Cassai’s friends, who will be called as prosecution witnesses, were asked to leave court so they did not hear details of the evidence.

Throughout the mention, Mr Closter - a third-year apprentice plumber from Launching Place – kept his head down.

The court previously heard CCTV footage showed friends of Mr Closter tried to restrain him moments before he fatally punched Mr Cassai.

Homicide squad Det-Sgt Sol Solomon said in January the footage showed Mr Closter falling and getting up from the ground, but did not show him being punched and kicked while on the ground, as he told police.

Mr Closter said he had had a few swigs of Galliano before the incident, but denied that he walked away from the unconscious man laughing and said, "That's what we're here for," the court heard.

Det-Sgt Solomon told the court it was unknown what sparked the argument between two groups of young men about 1am on December 31 on Point Nepean Rd.

He said the critical parts of the incident were captured on CCTV footage from two nearby cameras.

The court heard Mr Closter bumped Mr Cassai with his shoulder and then stood over him, as if to strike him, as he lay on the ground.

“CCTV footage clearly shows the accused here assaults Mr Cassai on three separate occasions and he appears to be focusing his aggression upon Mr Cassai and Mr Cassai alone,” Det-Sgt Solomon said.

He said a number of young men held Mr Closter back as he advanced on a retreating Mr Cassai, but he managed to break free and chased after him.

The footage shows Mr Cassai had his hands in front of him - in an attempt to defend himself or ward off the imminent attack - when Mr Closter delivered a “roundhouse style punch” to the right side of Mr Cassai’s head, the court heard.

“He falls straight to the ground backwards and we see his head hit the pavement and he lies completely still, he never moves,” Det-Sgt Solomon said.

He said Mr Cassai was airlifted to The Alfred hospital, but medical experts told police at 8am he had sustained an “unsurvivable head injury” with a “hopeless” prognosis.

He died about 4pm that day.

The court heard Mr Closter told police he and his friends had been to the Rye carnival when he saw a boy from Mr Cassai’s group remove a street sign and yelled out: ‘What do you think you’re doing, mate?"

Mr Closter said he was assaulted by a number of people and, after being knocked to the ground, instinctively struck out at the nearest person to him.

“He said he didn’t realise at the time he had seriously injured the boy that he punched,” Det-Sgt Solomon said.

Mr Russell, a West Australian man, was charged with affray and two counts of intentionally causing injury.

Mr McCluskey, of Kilsyth, was also charged with intentionally causing injury and affray.

Mr Closter and Mr McCluskey’s mention hearings were adjourned until May 10 because their legal representatives received required documentation from the prosecution recently.

Members of Mr Cassai’s family cried after the hearing and walked from the court, linking arms.

The bail conditions of the three accused were extended.
 

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'Fake Diggers' to defend case in court

A MAN accused of masquerading as an Australian Digger during an Anzac Day parade is likely to defend charges of being a fake returned serviceman.

The Brisbane Magistrates Court was on Friday told John Anthony Hines was likely to request a trial to defend a string of charges including improperly using service decorations on Anzac Day including an Australian active service medal, Vietnam campaign medals and an Australian service medal and infantry combat badge.

Hines and his twin brother, George Edward Carr, 68, are alleged to have marched alongside veteran SAS soldiers at last year's Anzac Parade in Brisbane.

It will be alleged a member of the public complained after the men were photographed displaying the medals.

Police found a large amount of military paraphernalia after searching the brothers' homes at Beenleigh and Oxenford.

Barrister Andrew O'Brien, for the twins, requested the pair's case be adjourned for a fortnight to allow their lawyers to sift through the Crown's extensive material.

Mr O'Brien said it was understood the prosecution was expected to provide the defence with up to 9000 documents that could be relevant to the twins' cases.

He said those documents would give a better insight into whether Mr Hines' trial would run longer than three days.

Magistrate Terry Gardner adjourned both cases until April 26.

Outside court, a number of diggers who had come to witness the twins' fate said it was appropriate the next mention of the case would be the day after Anzac Day.

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Underworld dad fronts court over tax

Carl Williams' father George at court during a previous case. Picture: Trevor Pinder Source: Herald Sun

THE father of slain underworld figure Carl Williams is set to go head to head with the ATO in a Supreme Court battle over an alleged tax debt of more than $700,000.

A trial date was this morning set for next month, almost 18 months after the Deputy Commissioner of Taxation initiated proceedings to recover about $743,000 in unpaid tax and interest alleged to be owed by Mr Williams in October 2011.

Justice David Beach rejected calls from lawyers for both parties to avoid a trial saying the matter had gone on long enough and risked going “on and on and on” if it was not dealt with quickly.

“This is hopeless. It’s absolutely hopeless,” he said.

“This case has been around since 2011. I am utterly unimpressed.

“Let’s bring this to an end, bring it to a head,” he said.

Lawyers for Williams, who appeared in court this morning, have earlier argued that no debt was owed because $576,000 was paid by Victoria Police as part of negotiations for his son's co-operation and the tax office remitted the remaining amount.

Mr Williams, Carl’s ex-wife Roberta and daughter Dhakota are also suing the State of Victoria as the operators of the jail where Williams died in 2010.

Carl Williams

Williams was bashed to death by another inmate, Matthew Charles Johnson, in the top-security Acacia unit at Barwon Prison.

Members of the Williams family claim the fatal bashing meant they were deprived of the financial benefits expected from his co-operation with police in a murder investigation, including payment of a $576,000 tax bill for his father and school fees for his daughter.

They are also claiming medical expenses incurred to deal with psychological issues resulting from Carl's death.

shannon.deery@news.com.au
 

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Filthy greasy spoon, court told

Tony Wong outside the Melbourne Magistrates' Court. Picture: Robert McKechnie Source: News Limited

COCKROACHES and rodent droppings were found baked into grease at a popular restaurant in Melbourne's southeast - and its owner was looking to expand his empire, a court was told.

Cafe Blah Blah proprietor Tony Wong faces a maximum fine of $1.6 million while his business, Lapont International Management Pty Ltd, could be slugged five times that amount.

Melbourne magistrate Simon Garnett is expected to sentence Wong next month.

The restaurateur and his company pleaded guilty to 40 charges stemming from breaches of the Food Standards Code.

Prosecutor Mathew Sherwell told the court health inspectors had found dead and live cockroaches on the floor, walls and benchtops in August.

He said there were also rodent faeces baked into grease around the kitchen of the Mordialloc restaurant and food was not refrigerated nor stored safely.

The court was told Kingston City Council inspected the premises after a complaint of food poisoning.

But defence lawyer Peter Harris said Wong - who had owned the cafe for more than seven years - had invested $25,000 to clean up the restaurant.

"He's clearly serious about getting the business back on the rails," Mr Harris said, adding that "the council had the authority to close down the premises - they did not do that".

He said Wong was planning to open another restaurant next to the cafe, on Main St, from "the ground up" so it would be modern.

Mr Sherwell said inspectors found more pest droppings, cockroaches and dirt when they returned earlier this month.

But Australian Food Hygiene Services boss Marjorie Harvey told the court she was impressed with the improvements made at the restaurant.

Mr Sherwell told the court he thought a fine of up to $80,000 would be appropriate.

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Court battle for Mad Dog's body

The bungalow in Glenroy where Antonio Loguancio bunkered down erupts in flames. Picture: Mark Dadswell Source: Herald Sun

A dispute over who has the right to Antonio Loguancio's remains could be headed for the Supreme Court. Source: Supplied

EXCLUSIVE: THE mother and girlfriend of Antonio "Mad Dog" Loguancio are embroiled in a Supreme Court dispute over who has the right to his remains.

Loguancio's body is in cold storage as his mother and his lover - whose bashing by the multiple rapist set in train the events that ended in his death - battle over who has the stronger claim to his body.

Deputy State Coroner Iain West had accepted that Julie Kocosky, 40, as Loguancio's de facto partner of six months, was his closest next of kin.

But Loguancio's mother, Lesley Ivy Gilmour, has launched a Supreme Court challenge, arguing the pair were not de factos and not living together when he died.

Police believe Loguancio took his own life when the Glenroy bungalow in which he was bunkered down went up in flames on March 3.

In a marathon siege, he had been holding police at bay for 40 hours after going on the run after bashing his girlfriend.

Ms Gilmour also accuses Ms Kocosky of refusing to tell her family about funeral plans.

Despite her son's brutal criminal record - which saw him first jailed at 18 - Ms Gilmour says that giving him a Catholic funeral is important, to allow him to rest in peace.

"My son was extremely important to our family and I love my son very much," she said.

"It would be very traumatic for me if I were unable to attend my son's funeral."

Fight for Mad Dog's body

THE drama that constantly surrounded the villainous life of the criminal they called Mad Dog has not ended with his death.

Antonio "Mad Dog" Loguancio lived his life as a depraved rapist, he lost it at the end of a lengthy siege, and now as he lies inanimate a court fight has broken out over his remains.

The tug of war over Loguancio - which are in refrigerated storage - began when his mother and his girlfriend both laid claim to his body.

Lesley Ivy Gilmour launched a Supreme Court appeal for her rapist son's body after Deputy State Coroner Iain West accepted the claim of Julie Kocosky - the woman Loguancio, 40, had been accused of bashing, days before holding police at bay for more than 40 hours.

Mr West accepted Ms Kocosky had been in a relationship with Loguancio for six months and was his de facto partner - a relationship he said Ms Gilmour had acknowledged.

He said he was satisfied Ms Kocosky was the senior next of kin and had the best claim on the body.

But Ms Gilmour, of Rockbank, said her son had no will, and was not Ms Kocosky's de facto nor living with her when he died.

Police at the scene in Glenroy where Antonio Loguancio holed himself up. Picture: Ian Currie Source: Herald Sun

In an affidavit lodged with the Supreme Court last week, Ms Gilmour accuses Ms Kocosky of refusing to tell her family about funeral plans.

Despite her son's brutal criminal record - which saw him first sent to jail at 18 - Ms Gilmour says burying him with a Catholic funeral is important to her family.

"My son was extremely important to our family and I love my son very much," she says.

"I am extremely worried that Julie Kocoski (sic) will not tell my family or I about where my son's funeral will take place.

"It would be very traumatic for me if I were unable to attend my son's funeral."

Loguancio went on the run after bashing his partner at their West Heidelberg home on February 23.

He was ultimately cornered by police in a bungalow in Justin Ave, Glenroy.

During a 43-hour stand-off Loguancio, who was armed with two high-powered guns, appeared at times to be highly agitated. He told negotiators he feared he would be shot if he came outside. Police repeatedly assured him he was safe.

But about 2pm on Sunday, March 3, Loguancio fired dozens of shots before the bungalow erupted in flames.

He is believed to have taken his own life around the same time tear gas was fired at the bungalow in a bid to end the siege.

Ms Gilmour says in her affidavit that she has never met Ms Kocosky and only learned of her existence from homicide squad detectives after her son's death.

"To the best of my knowledge, Julie Kocoski was not in a de facto relationship with my son and they were not living together at the time he passed away," she said.

Ms Gilmour said she did not know much about her son's life since he was released from his third jail term a year ago, saying "it became difficult to spend time with him because of the friends that he had made whilst inside".

Ms Gilmour said she had repeatedly tried, and failed, to communicate with Ms Kocosky in a bid to organise for all parties to be able to pay their respects to her son.

In her own email to the coroner on March 10, Ms Gilmour said: "We would like to arrange a meeting with the other interested party to discuss their wishes so that we can all come to an amicable solution for everyone concerned."

Ms Gilmour said Det Sgt Robert Nazaretian, who is leading the investigation into her son's death, had told her Ms Kocosky did not wish to speak to them about funeral arrangements.

Ms Gilmour's battle was almost lost before it began: she missed a 48-hour deadline to file her affidavit in support of her appeal.

Ms Gilmour said she had no money for legal advice, "because the small amount of savings that I have need to be used to organise a funeral for my son", and had unsuccessfully sought Legal Aid.

Drama surrounded the life of Antonio ''Mad Dog'' Loguancio. Source: Herald Sun

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Accused has Comanchero links: court

THE head of a collapsed trucking company who allegedly fleeced more than $30 million from the Commonwealth Bank has strong links to the Comancheros outlaw bikie gang, a court has heard.

Police allege members of the bikie gang besieged liquidators who had tried to execute a warrant and seize property from a Laverton premises after the collapse of the Viking Group of companies in 2011.

Former Viking head Steve Iliopoulos, 52, faced the Melbourne Magistrates’ court today charged with three counts of obtaining a financial advantage by deception totalling more than $30 million.

He has also been charged with attempting to obtain a financial advantage by deception after he allegedly tried to con the Westpac bank out of $53 million.

The court heard the Viking group was made up of more than 20 companies that operated a number of heavy haulage, transport and service businesses before it collapsed in 2011.

Police allege Mr Iliopoulos first used false documentation in October 2009 to secure a loan of $12.15 million before obtaining further lending for $17.4 million and $4 million the following year.

It was also alleged that between September 2009 and April 2011 Mr Iliopoulos submitted 50 offer statements bearing false invoice information and received an extra $30 million.

Daniel Porceddu, for Mr Iliopoulos, told the bail hearing his client would vigorously defend the charges and rejected prosecution suggestions he posed a significant flight risk.

Mr Porceddu said suggestion that Mr Iliopoulos had ways to flee Australia were “pure speculation” as were suggestions his links to the Commancheros could help him get a false passport.

Refusing bail, magistrate Peter Reardon said the Crown had indicated it had a strong case that may be an incentive for Mr Iliopoulos to not return to court to face the charges.

Mr Iliopoulos was remanded to reappear for a committal mention in July.

Shannon.deery@news.com.au

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Love and death laid out in court

An artist's sketch of Gerard Baden-Clay during day one of the committal hearing in Brisbane. Source: The Courier-Mail

IN THE front garden of a Brookfield house that would soon become a crime scene, Gerard Baden-Clay made a quiet confession to the officers who had responded to his call for help.

He'd been having an affair, he told police, and his wife Allison had found out. They'd been having counselling and were supposed to spend 15 minutes each night - and no more - discussing his betrayal.

Now she was gone.

Details of the real estate principal's statements to police that morning and his on-again, off-again dalliance with his staffer Toni McHugh were told to the Brisbane Magistrates Court this week during a hearing to determine whether he will stand trial for the murder of his wife.

But, as the court later heard, Baden-Clay's confession to police on the morning he reported Allison missing was certainly not the first time he'd revealed details of his affair.

Baden-Clay's business partners, Phillip Broom and Jocelyn Frost, had had enough of the ongoing drama.

They told the hearing Baden-Clay was eventually given an ultimatum - leave your wife or say goodbye to your mistress.

"At some points Gerard was leaving his wife to be with Toni, at other points, he was leaving Toni to remain with his wife," Broom told the court.

"It was confusing to me as to whether or not they were in the throes of an affair, had cooled off in their affair (or) had rekindled their affair."

Broom and Baden-Clay spoke about it at golf and on business trips.

Allison Baden-Clay at her friend Kerry-Anne Walker's wedding.

The court heard at one point Baden-Clay told Broom he needed a new, bigger car. One that would fit McHugh's two sons.

The affair was also a constant source of frustration for Frost.

"There were many, many conversations (about the affair)," she said under cross-examination.

"But certainly that was one of the main reasons that the partnership failed at the end.

"We asked him to either leave his wife or leave Toni or we wouldn't continue on."

When challenged by the defence, Frost told the court that while Baden-Clay never said he would leave his wife for his mistress, McHugh was certainly expecting there would be a day when he did.

First on scene

The court heard that on the morning of April 19, 2012, Indooroopilly police Constable Kieron Ash and his partner responded to a routine missing persons inquiry at a home on Brookfield Rd, Brookfield.

Baden-Clay, ready for work in a shirt and tie, was waiting with his parents and sister, Olivia Walton.

Toni McHugh: the court has been told of her affair with Gerard Baden-Clay.

Ash told the court Baden-Clay said he had left his wife on the couch watching The Footy Show when he went to bed at 10pm.

A heavy sleeper, he had no idea whether Allison had made it to bed. But she wasn't there in the morning when he got up.

The officer told the court Baden-Clay thought Allison might have gone for a walk - a 2km circuit she had been making in the mornings to try to lose weight.

Under examination, Ash confirmed the routine missing persons inquiry was becoming more and more concerning.

There were scratches on Baden-Clay's face, the court heard - deep gouges near his jaw and down to his neck that Ash couldn't help but notice.

The officer told the court he asked Baden-Clay how he came to have the scratches on his face.

"I cut myself shaving," Baden-Clay told him.

The court heard Ash searched the house for bloodied tissues - or any signs of a struggle. "I was looking for any signs of blood that would be matching the shaving cut that Gerard Baden-Clay told me about," he told the court. He found nothing.

Defence barrister Peter Davis put it to the officer he was suspicious from the start.

Allison Baden-Clay and best friend Kerry-Ann Walker.

"You went into the house, by the time you walked in, you'd seen the cuts on the cheek," he said to Ash.

"You had a missing person.

"It crossed your mind that something untoward might have happened to her.

"And that something untoward might have involved a husband.

"You were looking for evidence of what might have happened to Mrs Baden-Clay."

Ash agreed.

"There was no blood anywhere," he told the court.

In cross-examination, Davis scoffed at the officer's search, saying it wasn't "hard to imagine" someone flushing bloodied tissues down the toilet after shaving.

The scratches

Former Housing Minister Bruce Flegg was a witness at the committal hearing of Gerard Baden-Clay over the death of his wife Allison.

In the hours after Baden-Clay told police he had cut himself shaving, he was put in front of a camera and stripped to the waist.

The court was shown a series of photographs taken at the time of his face, neck and torso, riddled with a patchwork of cuts, scratches and grazes.

Scratches on his face, neck and near his armpit, as well as bruises and grazes on his chest, were analysed by a series of experts.

Queensland Health senior forensic medical officer Dr Robert Hoskins told the court it was "implausible" the deep scratches on Baden-Clay's face were from shaving.

"I think it's extremely, highly implausible but I wouldn't rule it out absolutely," he said.

Associate Professor David Wells, head of forensic medicine at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, was of a similar opinion.

"(Allison's fingernails) could certainly produce an injury similar to those displayed on the screen at the moment," he told the court.

Asked under cross-examination whether the large red patch of grazes on Baden-Clay's chest could have been self-inflicted while "scratching an irritation", Wells said it was unlikely.

"That extent of bruising after scratching yourself to relieve an itch would be very unusual," he said. "It would have to be a very vigorous sort of scratching."

SES volunteers search for Allison Baden-Clay last year. Picture: Nathan Richter

However, both men told the court their opinions were not an "exact science".

State of mind

Soon after the couple's marriage in 1997, Allison suffered depression, the court was told.

She explained to friends the condition was a side-effect of malaria medication from when the newlyweds went to South America.

Later, she was known to have suffered depression a number of times.

Her friend Kerry-Anne Walker told the court of noticing changes in Allison. They wouldn't catch up as much.

But, Walker said, Allison became much more outgoing after returning to work and was doing well at the time of her disappearance.

Davis asked if Walker would be surprised Allison sought to increase her anti-depressant medication after being affected by mood swings as recently as March 19, 2012. Walker said she would be surprised.

Allison previously went to doctors about being anxious and teary with a low mood, Davis suggested. Walker maintained Allison was in control.

Allison Baden-Clay.

The search for Allison finally ended with the discovery of her body under the Kholo Creek bridge, 10 days after being reported missing.

The court heard her body was 14km from home and, after being exposed to the elements, had suffered the effects of decomposition, hindering attempts to determine how she died.

Forensic pathologist Dr Nathan Milne travelled to the bridge and later performed the autopsy.

There was "insufficient positive evidence" to conclude a cause of death, he told the court.

Anti-anxiety medication sertraline, sold under the brand name Zoloft, was certainly in her system, Milne confirmed to the court.

But when Davis, for the defence, suggested the level of the drug was potentially fatal, Milne said there was not enough information to make any interpretation.

Queensland Health's Hoskins also gave his opinion on the sertraline levels.

Under cross-examination, Hoskins explained that the drug could concentrate in certain parts of the body after death - particularly the liver.

The court heard the liver was the only part of Allison's body from which Milne could retrieve blood for toxicology testing.

Gerard Baden-Clay's business partners Jocelyn Frost and Phillip Broom.

Sertraline could be expected to accumulate in the liver tissue, Hoskins told the court.

A high reading from her liver blood was to be expected as the liver tissues would have released the drug into the liver blood as the cells broke down.

Despite this, Hoskins told the court he did not believe the levels in Allison's blood were high enough to be fatal.

"It would be exceptional (if she'd died from it)," he said. "It's never happened before at that level.

"Everything that is found in these samples would be explicable with a normal therapeutic level."

Cabinet connection

Bruce Flegg was sitting up in bed at his Brookfield home on the night of April 19. He told the court he was on the phone to his friend Sue Heath when he heard a "bloodcurdling" female scream.

At the time, Flegg was the state's housing minister. He was sure Heath would have heard the sound, but she told him she hadn't.

Flegg testified he was concerned enough to go down the corridor to a spare bedroom where his media adviser Graeme Hallett, who had been staying with him for some months, was fast asleep.

"(He) sleeps like a railway sleeper," Flegg told the court. "I was unsuccessful in waking him up."

Concerned about the scream, Flegg ventured outside into the night in search of the source of the sound. Finding nothing, he went back inside where he heard a second scream.

The next morning Baden-Clay - his friend from the Kenmore Chamber of Commerce - reported Allison missing from his Brookfield home, about 1km away from Flegg's house.

The court heard Flegg didn't call the police that night or report the screams immediately. In the days that followed he visited Baden-Clay.

His friend Heath had told police in a statement that she gave Baden-Clay a mobile phone. She said at the time that Flegg did not know about the phone, but in court this week immediately made a correction. "We did discuss it. We agreed that I'd lend him the phone," she said in court.

Flegg told the court: "Most of us locally would not have expected this to be a murder."

He also said that before Allison's disappearance, a distressed Baden-Clay had asked him for a loan of $400,000 for his real estate business.

Hit by the Brisbane floods of January 2011 and a falling out with his business partners, Baden-Clay's Century 21 real estate agency had been in trouble.

Flegg told the court Baden-Clay was unwilling to tell him the names of his business partners and he "closed the door" on the discussion.

Sounds in the night

The court heard Flegg wasn't the only one to hear screams or other strange sounds the night before Allison was reported missing.

A procession of witnesses appeared in court this week to tell of hearing various sounds from a range of surrounding locations.

Julie Tzvetkoff, who lived across the road from the Baden-Clays, was in her kitchen some time between 8pm and 9pm when she heard a sharp, hard yell that lasted for about a second and a half.

Questioned by the defence, Tzvetkoff said she couldn't tell if a man or woman made the sound but it came from around the direction of the Baden-Clay home.

Her husband Kim was also home and heard the same sound, describing it to the court as a startled or shocked yell from a woman.

Brookfield physiotherapist Anne Rhodes, who lives a short distance away in the direction of the city, dropped in to the police command post on Friday, April 20, and asked officers what was happening.

The court heard Rhodes didn't tell police of hearing any strange sounds at the time.

Only later, she said, did she piece together a series of unusual noises on the night of April 19, including an argument, scream, thud and screech of tyres.

The defence, however, challenged the fact she had not reported the sounds earlier.

Susan Braun, another nearby Brookfield resident, told the court she heard loud, agitated barking at about 10pm on the night of April 19.

During cross-examination, she said after falling asleep she woke to the sound of a loud, unpleasant "human noise" in the area of the Baden-Clay residence.

Later she was woken a second time by the same type of sound.

In the Anstead area, where Allison's body was discovered, under the Kholo Creek bridge, the peace of the night on April 19 was also broken.

Something set off the neighbourhood dogs late into the night, witnesses told the court.

At a house about 700m from the bridge, Brian Mason's german shepherd started barking about 12.30am on Friday, April 20, the court was told. When Mason finally managed to stop his pet barking, he could hear other dogs howling to his left, straight ahead and across the river, he told the court.

David Jenkinson heard a car door closing, two heavy thuds and dogs barking, he told the court this week.

He described each of the thuds as being like the sound of a full bag of concrete being thrown on to grass.

Were the sounds related to the Baden-Clay case? What caused them?

The hearing continues on Monday.

kate.kyriacou@news.com.au

david.murray@news.com.au

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Tears as deadly fire video shown in court

Aerial view of Valley Span and surrounds.

WEEPING people fled the courtroom today as emotional amateur footage was played depicting the moment a deadly Black Saturday "fire tornado", which killed more than 100 people, approached St Andrews homes.

The lead plaintiff in the class action for compensation, Carol Matthews, cried through the four-and-a-half-minute video, shot only kilometres from the St Andrews home in which her 22-year-old son, Sam, died on February 7, 2009.

Robert Richter, QC, for Mrs Matthews, told the court the "entirely preventable" Kilmore East-King Lake fire was sparked due to the negligence of energy provider SPI Electricity.

"They did none of the things they should have done to prevent this old line from collapsing on Black Saturday and sparking the inferno that it did," Mr Richter told a packed courtroom.  

The fire killed 119 people, destroyed 1200 homes and caused an estimated $1 billion damage.

The court heard Sam Matthews, trained to fight fires by the CFA, told his mother on the phone as the inferno approached that a tree near the family home had just exploded.

Annotated view of pole-top assembly.

Mr Richter said she directed him to go to the bathroom and heard the windows explode. He said phone records show she unsuccessfully tried to call her son 15 more times, but he had died when the house burned down.

Mrs Matthews claims she has suffered significant psychological injuries as a result.

She represents more than 10,000 group members – including Darrin Gibson, who lost his partner, their two young daughters, three-year-old son, and parts of both his feet, which melted as he tried to save him family.

Mrs Matthews is also suing maintenance contractor Utility Services Corporation Limited, alleging it was negligent in its inspection and maintenance of the powerline, and the Department of Sustainability and Environment for allegedly failing to reduce fuel loads.

The DSE, CFA and Victoria Police are also facing allegations they failed to give appropriate warnings about the bushfire.

Carol Matthews was among those to address the people at the Black Saturday memorial service at St. Paul's Cathedral in Melbourne.

Mrs Matthews had alleged the CFA was negligent in failing to suppress the fire, but the claim was settled.
All the defendants deny the allegations and are fighting the claims.

In two separate recovery proceedings, the state government entities are claiming compensation for damage to government property from SPI and USC.

The Transport Accident Commission and the Victorian Workcover Authority are also claiming indemnity from payments made as a result of the bushfire from the power companies.

Justice Jack Forrest said he complied with the parties' requests to not read any report or documentation from the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, so "the trial starts on a blank canvas".

The total number of group members in the proceeding is estimated to be 10,450, of whom at least 1,100 bring personal injury claims, 5,950 bring property damage claims and 3,400 bring property damage and personal injury claims.

The Black Saturday bushfires claimed 173 lives.  

Affected people have until March 22 to register to join the group.

The Victorian government funded a purpose-built courtroom to accommodate the teams of barristers, dozens of expert witnesses and large numbers of people interested in attending the trial.

The thousands involved directly in the class action can watch the proceedings streamed live on the internet.

The trial is expected to run for nine months, but if liability is established, there could be years of further hearings on sub-issues of liability and damages.

Opening submissions began today and will last for one week.

The Black Saturday bushfires in February 2009 killed 173 people.

Four cases brought in relation to the other fires have settled.

View the original article here

Patel correctly diagnosed patient: court

JAYANT Patel correctly diagnosed the cause of bleeding in a patient who later died, a jury has been told.

The former Bundaberg Hospital surgeon, 62, has pleaded not guilty in the Brisbane Supreme Court to the manslaughter of Mervyn John Morris, 75, who died three weeks after a Hartmann's procedure removed a 15cm piece of his colon on May 23, 2003.

Patel performed the procedure to address Mr Morris' ongoing rectal bleeding - which he diagnosed as "bleeding diverticulosis" and is caused by the inflammation of tiny sacs that form in the colon.

Giving evidence for the defence of Monday, gastroenterologist Dr Johan van den Bogarde backed Patel's diagnosis that Mr Morris was suffering from diverticular bleeding and not radiation proctitis, or inflammation of the rectal lining from radiation treatment for cancer.

The Crown has contended Mr Morris was incorrectly diagnosed.

Dr Bogarde told the court he had "never seen" a patient with radiation proctitis present with symptoms similar to those of Mr Morris.

He said Mr Morris' pattern of bleeding was "completely different" to that of an individual with ongoing radiation proctitis.

Dr Bogarde said he believed the sigmoid colectomy and colostomy Patel performed to treat the ongoing bleeding was "sufficient" and in the last decade recommended it for between "10 and 15" of his own patients with diverticular bleeding.

He told the jury Mr Morris' surgery was non-elective because he appeared to have experienced an "acute" bleed in the days leading up to his admission to hospital on May 20, 2003.

Dr Bogarde said Mr Morris was in a "fairly stable state" when Patel performed the surgery and it was "a window of opportunity".

"A good surgeon knows when to operate, the better surgeon knows when to operate but the best surgeon knows when not to operate," he told the court, referring to a traditional medical axiom.

He said timing a surgery to suit the patient and their recovery was "very important and extremely difficult".

Mr Morris died of cardio-respiratory failure, liver protein deficiency, fluid overload, malnutrition and blood poisoning on June 14, 2003.

Patel is accused of being criminally negligent for misdiagnosing Mr Morris' rectal bleeding and performing an unnecessary surgery.

Barrister Ken Fleming QC, for Patel, told the court the accused had done his best before complications moved in.

The trial continues before Justice George Fryberg.

View the original article here

Tears as deadly fire video shown in court

Aerial view of Valley Span and surrounds.

WEEPING people fled the courtroom today as emotional amateur footage was played depicting the moment a deadly Black Saturday "fire tornado", which killed more than 100 people, approached St Andrews homes.

The lead plaintiff in the class action for compensation, Carol Matthews, cried through the four-and-a-half-minute video, shot only kilometres from the St Andrews home in which her 22-year-old son, Sam, died on February 7, 2009.

Robert Richter, QC, for Mrs Matthews, told the court the "entirely preventable" Kilmore East-King Lake fire was sparked due to the negligence of energy provider SPI Electricity.

"They did none of the things they should have done to prevent this old line from collapsing on Black Saturday and sparking the inferno that it did," Mr Richter told a packed courtroom.  

The fire killed 119 people, destroyed 1200 homes and caused an estimated $1 billion damage.

The court heard Sam Matthews, trained to fight fires by the CFA, told his mother on the phone as the inferno approached that a tree near the family home had just exploded.

Annotated view of pole-top assembly.

Mr Richter said she directed him to go to the bathroom and heard the windows explode. He said phone records show she unsuccessfully tried to call her son 15 more times, but he had died when the house burned down.

Mrs Matthews claims she has suffered significant psychological injuries as a result.

She represents more than 10,000 group members – including Darrin Gibson, who lost his partner, their two young daughters, three-year-old son, and parts of both his feet, which melted as he tried to save him family.

Mrs Matthews is also suing maintenance contractor Utility Services Corporation Limited, alleging it was negligent in its inspection and maintenance of the powerline, and the Department of Sustainability and Environment for allegedly failing to reduce fuel loads.

The DSE, CFA and Victoria Police are also facing allegations they failed to give appropriate warnings about the bushfire.

Carol Matthews was among those to address the people at the Black Saturday memorial service at St. Paul's Cathedral in Melbourne.

Mrs Matthews had alleged the CFA was negligent in failing to suppress the fire, but the claim was settled.
All the defendants deny the allegations and are fighting the claims.

In two separate recovery proceedings, the state government entities are claiming compensation for damage to government property from SPI and USC.

The Transport Accident Commission and the Victorian Workcover Authority are also claiming indemnity from payments made as a result of the bushfire from the power companies.

Justice Jack Forrest said he complied with the parties' requests to not read any report or documentation from the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission, so "the trial starts on a blank canvas".

The total number of group members in the proceeding is estimated to be 10,450, of whom at least 1,100 bring personal injury claims, 5,950 bring property damage claims and 3,400 bring property damage and personal injury claims.

The Black Saturday bushfires claimed 173 lives.  

Affected people have until March 22 to register to join the group.

The Victorian government funded a purpose-built courtroom to accommodate the teams of barristers, dozens of expert witnesses and large numbers of people interested in attending the trial.

The thousands involved directly in the class action can watch the proceedings streamed live on the internet.

The trial is expected to run for nine months, but if liability is established, there could be years of further hearings on sub-issues of liability and damages.

Opening submissions began today and will last for one week.

The Black Saturday bushfires in February 2009 killed 173 people.

Four cases brought in relation to the other fires have settled.

View the original article here

Two in court over tragic NYE brawl

Hundreds of mourners attend the funeral for David Cassai, who was killed during a fight in Rye. Source: Herald Sun

David Cassai. Source: Supplied

TWO young men charged over their alleged involvement in a New Year's Eve brawl during which Templestowe man David Cassai was allegedly attacked and later died have appeared in court for the first time since being charged.

Thomas McCluskey, 25, and Tyrone Russell, 21, appeared for filing hearings in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court.

Neither man is facing charges directly relating to Mr Cassai’s death.

Mr McCluskey is facing single counts of affray and intentionally causing injury to another man.

He was charged on January 2.

Mr Russell is charged with affray and two counts of intentionally causing injury to two other men during the altercation at Rye.

Detectives charged him on January 4.

Magistrate Duncan Reynolds was told that CCTV footage of the incident would be provided to both men’s lawyers as part of the police brief of evidence.

Defence lawyer Tom Sawyer, for Mr McCluskey, told Mr Reynolds that police had agreed to a slight change to his client’s reporting conditions while on bail.

Rob Melasecca, for Mr Russell, also confirmed a change to certain bail conditions.

Mr Melasecca said police had agreed to alter Mr Russell’s conditions to allow him to report to police once a week, notify the lead detective within 24 hours of any change of address and suspend Mr Russell’s reporting and curfew conditions when he resides in Western Australia while working there.

“He was employed there prior to these charges,” Mr Melasecca told the court.

Both men will re-appear back in court for a committal mention on April 26.

Dylan John Closter, 18, has been charged with manslaughter in relation to Mr Cassai’s death, and will appear in court on the same date.

Mr Cassai, 22, died in hospital after he was allegedly punched and his head hit concrete during the fight.        

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Drug accused flight risk, court told

AN alleged member of a key Melbourne drug syndicate was an "extreme" flight risk with associates in the Philippines and links to the Gladiators outlaw motorcycle gang in New South Wales, a bail hearing has been told.

Scott James Frankland, 28, is accused of being a member of the drug gang and fleeing to the Philippines three days after police raided a clandestine lab in the affluent Melbourne suburb of Canterbury.

Melbourne Magistrates Court was told Mr Frankland, known within the drug gang as “GQ”, was second in charge to the syndicate’s boss and was sent more than $58,000 via Western Union money transfers while in the Philippines.

Sen-Det Warren Day, of the Victoria Police clandestine laboratory squad, told Mr Frankland’s bail application hearing that police ran an operation between July 2011 and February 2012 after discovering the “sophisticated” amphetamines lab in a house in Rochester Rd, Canterbury.

Sen-Det Day said several men were identified as being involved in the large-scale syndicate.

The partial remains of one of those alleged members, a man named Yengo Faugere, were found at a drug lab in St Leonards, on the Bellarine Peninsula.

Sen-Det Day alleged that Mr Frankland assisted in the collection of equipment and in the drug manufacturing process at labs in Canterbury and Reservoir.

The court was told Mr Frankland helped recruit a gang member whom he taught to use fake identification and rent properties as well as collecting precursor chemicals.

Detectives raided the Canterbury lab on July 8, 2011.

“The whole two-bedroom unit was being used entirely for the manufacturing of amphetamine-type substances,” Sen-Det Day told the hearing.

“There was no fridge, no beds and no furniture.”

Investigators found glassware, filters, chemicals used to produce amphetamines, liquid amphetamine known as “freebase” and a pill press, the court was told.

“Firearms including a loaded Norinco 7.62 calibre semi-automatic centre-fire rifle, a .22 calibre rifle and a large quantity of bullets …were located in the roof next to the manhole,” Sen-Det Day said.

The court was told Mr Frankland’s fingerprints were found on documents and his photo on a fake driver’s licence under the name George Davis.

“A photocopy of a fraudulent Victorian driver’s licence and Australian passports were also located within the crime scene which depict the image of Yengo Faugere,” Sen-Det Day said.

“Those documents match those provided to the real estate agency to lease the property.”

The court was told that three days after the police raid in Canterbury, Mr Frankland took off to the Phillipines and returned to Australia in April last year unaware detectives wanted to arrest him.

The gang was linked to labs in Canterbury, Kew, Reservoir and the “largest and most sophisticated” in St Leonards, the court heard.

In opposing bail, Sen-Det Day said Mr Frankland was a flight risk due to his overseas and interstate connections.

Defence barrister Colin Mandy cited a delay before any trial, the strength of the Crown case and Mr Frankland’s health concerns as exceptional circumstances for bail.

Magistrate Donna Bakos refused bail.

Mr Frankland, who is facing charges including trafficking a large commercial quantity of a drug of dependence and firearms offences, will re-appear in court at a later date.

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