Latest news with #CapeYork
SBS Australia
5 days ago
- SBS Australia
NITV Radio NEWS 18/07/2025
Law firm Maurice Blackburn alleges Quantas breached the Privacy Act, because it failed to protect customers. Two teenagers were charged with the murder of 57 year old Zdravko during a failed break-in on the Sunshine Coast. A former Quarry worker has been committed to stand trial for the alleged murder of an Indigenous woman in Cape York mor than a decade ago. That and more on NITV Radio.
ABC News
16-07-2025
- ABC News
Cape York man committed to stand trial for murder of Indigenous woman 12 years ago
A former Queensland quarry worker has been committed to stand trial for the alleged murder of an Indigenous woman more than a decade ago. Warning: This article contains details said in court of threats and violence that some readers may find distressing. A 23-year-old Kowanyama woman, known for cultural reasons as Ms Bernard, was last seen at a pub in the Cape York town of Coen on February 10, 2013. Ms Bernard allegedly left the bar with Thomas Maxwell Byrnes, 63, with the intention of going to a quarry where he worked at Archer River, 68 kilometres north of Coen. Ms Bernard's family reported her missing a few days later, which prompted a search of surrounding bushland, home to several disused mine shafts, but her body has never been found. Mr Byrnes was charged with Ms Bernard's murder in January last year and has remained in custody since. He has faced several committal hearings in the Cairns Magistrates Court since May, where several witnesses have been cross-examined. In one instance, the former manager of the Exchange Hotel in Coen, Dean Lloyd, said Mr Byrnes was a regular patron at the bar. Mr Lloyd told the court he recalled having a conversation with Mr Byrnes and another customer where they discussed the disappearance of Ms Bernard. He said it appeared to him that Mr Byrnes was intoxicated. "He then said, 'I took [Ms Bernard] from the pub and we were meant to go home,' something along those lines, and 'You know what happened next,'" he said. Mr Lloyd said he "froze" and responded by saying that he did not know what happened next. He said Mr Byrnes took a while to respond. "He looked at me and [the other patron] and said, 'Youse f**king say anything, youse'll be put beside her and never found." A regular visitor to the Coen Exchange Hotel, Jacqueline May Greenhalgh, told another hearing that she spoke with other regulars like Mr Byrnes. She said words in a conversation with a group of people following Ms Bernard's disappearance were "etched" in her mind. Ms Greenhalgh said Mr Byrnes made unexpected comments that Ms Bernard's body would not be found by authorities. In a hearing on Tuesday, Coen resident Neville Shepherd told the court he had a conversation with Mr Byrnes in 2017 or 2018 when he said Ms Bernard had bitten him on the penis. In the same conversation, Mr Shepherd said Mr Byrnes also said he'd "roughed her up". Mr Byrnes's lawyer, James Sheridan, questioned Mr Shepherd's recollection of the conversation, noting Mr Shepherd had a hearing impairment. Mr Sheridan asked Mr Shepherd if Mr Byrnes might have said, "She was a bit rough." Mr Shepherd said that was possible. He said Mr Byrnes also told him that Ms Bernard "took off" and he did not ask him what that meant. Magistrate Scott Luxton committed Mr Byrnes to stand trial in the Cairns Supreme Court at a date to be set. Mr Byrnes did not enter a plea and remains in custody.
Daily Mail
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Jaw-dropping moment ray launches itself out of the water to avoid hammerhead shark after being chased into the shallows
A fisherman has captured the breath-taking moment a ray leapt out of the water while it was being hunted by a hammerhead shark. Brody Sutton was fishing off the coast of Cape York in Queensland last week when he spotted the shark set its sights on the ray. He pulled out his camera and began filming as the hammerhead swam through the shallows on pursuit of its prey. In a stunning moment, the ray propelled itself out of the water in order to evade the clutches of the fierce predator. The unexpected movement caused the shark to become disoriented and saved the ray's life. 'It was great to watch,' Mr Sutton told Yahoo News. 'I've seen it many times just not that close to the boat.' Mr Sutton's jaw-dropping clip has gone viral around the world with commentators as far as the UK and US amazed by the ray 'taking flight'. One commented: 'Never thought I'd see something flying while swimming at the same time!!! Like literally flying under the water!' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Brody sutton (@ 'Athlete of the year goes to..... Flying Stingray,' another remarked. A third said: 'That shark was BAMBOOZLED.' 'Since when could stingrays jump? Or even swim that fast,' someone else added. Mr Sutton confirmed the ray evaded the shark for good by seeking shelter under his boat. 'The ray escaped under my boat,' he said. Lawrence Chlebeck, a marine biologist from Humane World for Animals, explained the ray is likely a cownose or mobula ray. These species are known to use their fins like wings as opposed to a stingray which stays close to the seafloor. He explained the ray's flying move helps to break the hammerhead's line of vision. 'By quickly exiting the water, it can break that focus that the shark has, and you can tell the predator loses it shortly after because of it,' Mr Chlebeck explained.
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fisherman captures incredible moment 'not often witnessed by people' off Aussie coast
A fisherman has captured the incredible moment a ray appeared to "fly through the air" as it attempted to evade a predator along the Australian coast this week, with millions of people around the world stunned by the tactic. Brody Sutton was fishing off the coast of Cape York in Queensland last week and pulled out his camera after seeing a hammerhead shark and ray speed through the shallows. As the shark made a beeline towards its prey, the ray leapt out of the water in a stunning display of athleticism, causing the shark to become disorientated and momentarily lose sight of its prey. Lawrence Chlebeck, a marine biologist from Humane World for Animals, told Yahoo News the ray in question was likely a cownose or mobula ray. Unlike the more commonly known stingray, which stays close to the seafloor, these other species swim through the middle of the ocean and are known to use their "fins like wings". "What it's doing is breaking the line of vision that the hammerhead has on it, so just by quickly exiting the water, it can break that focus that the shark has, and you can tell the predator loses it shortly after because of it," Lawrence explained. It's a common tactic deployed by rays, but it's "not often witnessed by people". "This is definitely something that small fish and rays have the ability to do. This little guy was able to leap up, and it was very effective. All they need to do is get a split second to break the visual connection that the predator has on it," Lawrence said. 🐟 Calls for national response as beaches turn into 'graveyards of fish' 👨 Fisherman's incredible catch set to 'feed whole family' for months 🎣 Fishermen catch fish 'rarely seen' in Aussie waters The footage has gone viral within a number of days, with the video reshared in places like the US and the UK. It is unclear whether the ray was able to successfully escape its predator by swimming under the boat, or if the shark got it in the end. "This is crazy," one person responded online, while another said the jumping ray was "Pokemon level crazy". Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Ray uses 'fins as wings' to evade predator off Aussie coast
A ray was captured leaping out the water in Cape York to evade a hammerhead shark chasing after it last week.
