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EXCLUSIVE Shocked owners reveal the damage left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates who turned their family home into a cesspit

EXCLUSIVE Shocked owners reveal the damage left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates who turned their family home into a cesspit

Daily Mail​4 hours ago

All traces of the filth and rubbish left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates have been removed and dumped at a tip by the owners of the Queensland rental home where they lived.
Jacob and Milena Otto leased the three-bedroom Gin Gin property to James Wood and Tanika Bromley, who lived with Pheobe and are now accused of her murder.
Pheobe's remains were found in Good Night Scrub National Park - located about an hour from the property - on June 6.
It is alleged Wood and Bromley drove the 17-year-old to Bundaberg Regional Airport on May 15, but she never checked in for her flight to Western Australia. Days later, police declared the Gin Gin house and their car a crime scene.
Wood and Bromley were charged with Pheobe's murder, along with two counts each of interfering with a corpse, on June 5.
The Ottos, who live 900km away in the North Queensland town of Ayr, were allowed to enter their Gin Gin property earlier this month when police finished their forensic investigation.
They faced a massive clean-up with dog poo, broken furniture and rubbish throughout the property.
The couple said they took 'two skip bins and many trailer loads' to the local tip.
They added that kind-hearted locals helped them.
'While at the house these past few days, people would stop in and lend a hand for a few hours,' they said.
The couple, who were given $2,275 on a now-closed GoFundMe, have claimed the classic Queenslander-style house suffered structural damage.
They hope to restore the property to its former glory and put it back on the rental market.
'The house is almost empty now and cleaners are organised. There is some structural damage but that is something for tradies,' they said recently.
'Meanwhile, we have returned to work up north.'
Former homicide detective Charlie Bezzina told Daily Mail Australia that Queensland Police 'should be applauded' for completing their forensic work on a complex crime scene so quickly.
'You can't keep a crime scene open forever in Australia, unlike in other countries like America,' he said.
'If there was anything (forensics) needed to find, they would have found it by now.
'You can't justify holding onto a crime scene just in case something else pops up - you have to hand it back to the rightful owner. You have to be fair.'
In a previous interview with Daily Mail Australia, Mr Otto revealed that when he'd approved Bromley as a tenant, she 'ticked all the right boxes'.
It's understood only Bromley was on the lease, and that she never missed a rental payment.
Criminal psychologist Tim Watson-Munro described the crime scene as 'chronic, next-level squalor'.
'I take it (Wood and Bromley) are not going to get their bond back,' he said.
Mrs Otto also confirmed that the stench pervading the air was due to Wood's puppies, which died from a supposed worm infestation.
When the Ottos first returned to the home on June 7, their devastation was evident.
'We don't know where to start,' they admitted.
'We started a family in this home.'

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Aussie slams infuriating act at gym: 'This is a charade'
Aussie slams infuriating act at gym: 'This is a charade'

Daily Mail​

time3 hours ago

  • Daily Mail​

Aussie slams infuriating act at gym: 'This is a charade'

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EXCLUSIVE Shocked owners reveal the damage left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates who turned their family home into a cesspit
EXCLUSIVE Shocked owners reveal the damage left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates who turned their family home into a cesspit

Daily Mail​

time4 hours ago

  • Daily Mail​

EXCLUSIVE Shocked owners reveal the damage left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates who turned their family home into a cesspit

All traces of the filth and rubbish left by Pheobe Bishop's housemates have been removed and dumped at a tip by the owners of the Queensland rental home where they lived. Jacob and Milena Otto leased the three-bedroom Gin Gin property to James Wood and Tanika Bromley, who lived with Pheobe and are now accused of her murder. Pheobe's remains were found in Good Night Scrub National Park - located about an hour from the property - on June 6. It is alleged Wood and Bromley drove the 17-year-old to Bundaberg Regional Airport on May 15, but she never checked in for her flight to Western Australia. Days later, police declared the Gin Gin house and their car a crime scene. Wood and Bromley were charged with Pheobe's murder, along with two counts each of interfering with a corpse, on June 5. The Ottos, who live 900km away in the North Queensland town of Ayr, were allowed to enter their Gin Gin property earlier this month when police finished their forensic investigation. They faced a massive clean-up with dog poo, broken furniture and rubbish throughout the property. The couple said they took 'two skip bins and many trailer loads' to the local tip. They added that kind-hearted locals helped them. 'While at the house these past few days, people would stop in and lend a hand for a few hours,' they said. The couple, who were given $2,275 on a now-closed GoFundMe, have claimed the classic Queenslander-style house suffered structural damage. They hope to restore the property to its former glory and put it back on the rental market. 'The house is almost empty now and cleaners are organised. There is some structural damage but that is something for tradies,' they said recently. 'Meanwhile, we have returned to work up north.' Former homicide detective Charlie Bezzina told Daily Mail Australia that Queensland Police 'should be applauded' for completing their forensic work on a complex crime scene so quickly. 'You can't keep a crime scene open forever in Australia, unlike in other countries like America,' he said. 'If there was anything (forensics) needed to find, they would have found it by now. 'You can't justify holding onto a crime scene just in case something else pops up - you have to hand it back to the rightful owner. You have to be fair.' In a previous interview with Daily Mail Australia, Mr Otto revealed that when he'd approved Bromley as a tenant, she 'ticked all the right boxes'. It's understood only Bromley was on the lease, and that she never missed a rental payment. Criminal psychologist Tim Watson-Munro described the crime scene as 'chronic, next-level squalor'. 'I take it (Wood and Bromley) are not going to get their bond back,' he said. Mrs Otto also confirmed that the stench pervading the air was due to Wood's puppies, which died from a supposed worm infestation. When the Ottos first returned to the home on June 7, their devastation was evident. 'We don't know where to start,' they admitted. 'We started a family in this home.'

South Africa's gang warfare: The victims caught in the crossfire in Cape Town
South Africa's gang warfare: The victims caught in the crossfire in Cape Town

BBC News

time5 hours ago

  • BBC News

South Africa's gang warfare: The victims caught in the crossfire in Cape Town

The distraught father lies on the narrow, single bed and points to two small bullet holes in the wall of his is stark evidence of a moment that shattered his family's life Africa's four-year-old son Davin was shot dead in February, caught in the crossfire of a shoot-out between criminals. He was a victim of the gang warfare that has plagued the Cape Flats, the townships around Cape Town - a legacy of apartheid, when the non-white population was forcibly moved from the centre of the wealthy city to the under-resourced outskirts."This is the bullet hole here," he says. "This is where he slept."The family had already endured unspeakable older sister, Kelly Amber, was killed two years earlier, also shot as rivals fired at each other. She was Devon and his wife, Undean, have only their youngest daughter left."She asks me: 'Where's my brother?'" says Undean. "So I told her he's with Jesus in daddy's heart and in my heart." 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The gangs provide a form of social structure that actually provides services to the communities that the state doesn't. They provide food for homes. Money for electricity. Money for transport or funerals. These gangs even pay school fees."They are embedded in the community and "that's why it's so difficult for the police to tackle them… it means that they can use non-gang members' houses to store drugs and store weapons". But there are people trying to tackle the kilometres (nine miles) away from Wesbank is Hanover Park where Pastor Craven Engel is glued to his mobile phone almost all day, every day in his quest for mission is to mediate in gang conflicts to stop this violence and the killings, fuelled by the lucrative trade in drugs. He and his team try to follow a basic formula: detection, interruption and changing mindsets."Hanover Park doesn't really have an economy to speak of," says Pastor Engel. "The bulk of the economy comes out of the drug culture. That's the biggest economy."Pastor Engel says that apartheid's impact on the area can't be overlooked but neither can generational trauma - manifested as drug addiction and then family breakdown."The substance [drug] creates unemployment, the substance creates robbery, it creates gang fights because of turfs. So, the substance sits in the middle of so many of the atrocities within the community," says Pastor Engel, who estimates that around 70% of local children are living with some kind of community of around 50,000 people has to endure shootings and stabbings almost daily. And it's often young people who are doing the killing and being killed. "The policing approach alone is unlikely to solve the problem because you might arrest people for being gang members, for having guns and for shootings and murders. They will go to prison, but then they get replaced by younger members. And that creates a whole different set of problems. They're more likely to get into fights over territory and turf," says Mr Newham."How does a kid get shot seven times in his head or three times in his back? How does a stray bullet hit a kid?" asks Pastor Town safety fears force parents to seek former white-only schoolsOn his phone, he calls up community leaders and gang kingpins, constantly cajoling to try and head off the violence. When BBC Africa Eye visits him he is trying to broker a ceasefire between two warring gangs - and manages to reach the jailed leader of one of them."If I want something to happen then it still happens. Do you understand pastor?" the gang boss shouts down the line. "But I can tell you one thing. I'm a guy that likes to counter if I come under fire."Threats. Even from behind Pastor Engel is relentless. He is highly visible in his community, whether in the home of a parishioner or before his large and loud congregation in the pulpit on a Sunday."I think that what makes it very, very terrible now is there are more children involved in the gangs, because gangs are recruiting between the ages of eight and 15 years old," he programme he runs used to get government money, but that has dried up. To cut off the supply lines and protect the innocent, he will meet victims and perpetrators anywhere and at any also sends rehabilitated gang members to negotiate directly with warring factions. Those who lived a life on the edge of death know how critical it is to push for peace Hans is one such person. He is meeting rival gangs to convince them to honour a ceasefire. "I was also in this game. As long as you make a decision that you want to be a better person. That's all," he tells a group of gang has a chilling response: "The more we kill, the more ground we seize and the more ground we have, the more we can build. So, for me to speak about peace - I cannot make that decision because it's not my decision to ensure peace."The ceasefire that is eventually agreed lasts just a few days, shattered by the killing of two people in a drive-by some in the thick of the conflict have had enough. Fernando - or Nando - Johnston is in a gang called the Mongrels, and he wants to try and find a way out with the help of Pastor pastor describes Mr Johnston as being young and "born into the gang" since his whole family was involved."In this game there are only two options - it is either you go to jail or you die, " says Mr Johnston."I really do want to change direction and I believe there is always a way. That is the reason I approached the pastor - to ask him if there is a plan or way to take me."He will join a six- to 12-week programme of rehabilitation run by the pastor and funded by charitable donations designed to get people off drugs and into work."The thing is you can now start building yourself up again," Pastor Engel tells him. "You'll be able to get yourself a job and make money for yourself. Then you won't have to hustle and scavenge around here any more.""I'm ready to go, pastor," says Mr Johnston, poised to leave his battered and scarred community in search of a new closest to him have gathered to wish him well. His mother, Angeline April, holds back the tears, desperate that, this time, her son will choose life. "Please just make the best of this opportunity, Nando," she says."Yes mummy, I always make the best of a situation."But that has never been easy."Fernando's dad was a gangster but my other children's father was a gentleman," says Mr Johnston's mother."But because he was a gangster, the children also got involved in gangsterism despite me constantly warning them. It wasn't easy raising four boys on my own, you know. I'm always encouraging him to make a change, because I love him very much."And so far so good for Mr Johnston. Two weeks on from starting the programme, he is still there."Nando is stabilising. He's in a works programme. He's busy seeing his family, seeing his kids. He did a house visit yesterday. We let him loose and he came back and tested clear with no drugs in his system," says Pastor Engel. Hope is a rare commodity here, but it does sometimes spring through the cracks in the streets that have seen so much all streets, though. Very little hope is found at Devon Africa and Undean Koopman's house, which sits in the middle of a cycle of killings and retaliation that hit the areas being fought over on the very edges of this beautiful South African city is overwhelming for many of those just struggling to those caught in the middle often have to make impossible choices."Community members, even if they are opposed to the gangs, are not necessarily pro-police for two reasons," says Mr Newham."One is that they just don't know the police will actually come if called. And if they do call the police, they have no idea if the police officers are corrupt. People don't understand the scale of the challenge in South Africa."Sentiments reflected by the peacemakers on the frontlines in this war. "Nobody is going to come from anywhere to help or save us. Not from overseas. Not from our local government. No-one is going to come with a magic wand to cure the Cape Flats," says Pastor Engel."As individuals we need to be so determined to build up resilience, create hope for our people and to grow. Because politics has clearly failed us." More from BBC Africa Eye: 'Nowhere is safe' - Cameroonians trapped between separatists and soldiersBBC identifies security forces who shot Kenya anti-tax protestersSudan's years of war - BBC smuggles in phones to reveal hunger and fearSecret filming reveals brazen tactics of UK immigration scammers'Terrible things happened' - inside TB Joshua's church of horrors Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica

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