Police powers to randomly search people for a weapon without a warrant in a public place have been made permanent in Queensland.
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Search for missing 26-year-old Gach Top west of Alice Springs enters fourth day
The search for missing Alice Springs man Gach Top has entered its fourth day, with police continuing to hold serious concerns for his welfare amid near-freezing temperatures in the Red Centre overnight. There was an eerie quiet at the search camp west of the town on Thursday as Mr Top's loved ones climbed out of their cars, hoping for news of their partner, son, brother and friend. The 26-year-old went missing on Monday before his car was found abandoned 14.5 kilometres west of John Flynn's Grave Historical Reserve on the outskirts of Alice Springs the next morning. Mr Top has not been seen or heard from since Monday night. Police and emergency services have so far scoured more than 500 square kilometres of rugged, grassy landscape in their aerial and ground search, in helicopters, by foot and in all-terrain vehicles. Mr Top's father, David Kong, along with members of his family, have been at the centre of search efforts, about 20 kilometres west of Alice Springs. "I actually got the message from his partner midnight on Monday that he didn't show up at work," Mr Kong said. "Then the whole family started panicking, there was no answer when we called [him]. Mr Kong said his son had recently become a father to his own four-week-old child. While Mr Top had previously explored Simpsons Gap with his sister, Mr Kong said, the father was not sure whether he was much of a bushwalker. Acting Sergeant Chris Grotherr said the surrounding MacDonnell Ranges made it "a bit easier in some senses" to focus search efforts. "The area between the range area is quite flat so that is helpful as well, however it is populated by knee-high grass which does make it difficult for ground search teams to locate certain items," he said. The search effort has included more than 50 people from local and Darwin police units, fire and rescue teams and ranger groups. Mr Kong said his family was grateful to everyone who had been searching for his "caring" son. "The whole community, I'm really thankful for the hard work they've been doing for the last few days," he said. Police have described Mr Top as "a six-foot-tall male of Sudanese appearance", with a lean build and short curly hair. He was last seen wearing a red or orange puffer jacket, cream-coloured tracksuit pants and dark-coloured runners. His family and police are urging anyone who may have seen him near Larapinta Drive, Standley Chasm or Simpsons Gap on Monday evening, or who may know his whereabouts, to make contact.
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New criminal group dubbed 'G7' linked to Sydney underworld violence, police say
A new Sydney criminal syndicate has drawn the attention of detectives over its alleged links to an ongoing underworld feud. NSW Police said 13 members of an emerging criminal network in Sydney's south-west, dubbed 'G7', had been arrested and charged in recent months. It is alleged the group are made up of young men and responsible for a string of public place shootings, home invasions, and motor vehicle thefts across Sydney, which have been aiding several high-profile organisations . The ABC has been told the group did not play sides and had been recruited for feuding organisations including the notorious Alameddine crime network and Brothers for Life, also referred to as the Hamzy family. Head of Taskforce Falcon, Detective Superintendent Jason Box said police became aware of the group's operations after they began investigating the suspected supply of vehicles used in recent criminal activities earlier this year. "We believe they are independently working for organised crime networks, they're being recruited by them," Superintendent Box said. Police have located 17 "staged" vehicles, which have been linked to G7. The group has been linked to at least two shootings this year, which are being investigated as part of an internal criminal feud. One of those was a drive by shooting at Merrylands in March where an innocent mother and her four children escaped uninjured after their home was peppered with bullets. "No one has died as a result of any [of their] actions but they've come close," Superintendent Box said. "On one occasion there was over 40 shots fired into two premises, missing the occupants by centimetres. "Someone was stabbed as a result of their actions and that person could have been killed." Two 15-year-old boys were arrested in relation to that incident and currently remain before the courts. In the past week, police have arrested four people aged between 18 and 21 who detectives believe are either members or associates of G7. In vision provided by NSW Police, Raptor Squad officers can be seen arresting a 21-year-old man in the middle of a street in Narellan on Wednesday, who was later charged with possessing a shortened firearm and participating in a criminal group. Police said it followed nine other arrests made in relation to this investigation in recent months. Detectives also carried out raids on several properties in the past week including in Greystanes and Menai where they seized a single barrel shotgun, several rounds of ammunition, 14 mobile phones, one kilogram on cocaine and almost $30,000 in cash. "We hope we've prevented them from committing a lot more offences and we hope it slows them down," Superintendent Box said.
