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Herald Sun
20-07-2025
- Herald Sun
Patrick Dangerfield leads road safety campaign after uncle Tim Utber's death
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News. Patrick Dangerfield's uncle Tim was drink-driving when a car ploughed through a red light to end his life and change his own family forever. These days as his nephew drives home to Moggs Creek, it is the stream of drivers texting while behind the wheel that shocks and frustrates the Geelong captain. Dangerfield has long been an advocate for responsible drinking given uncle Tim Utber's death 29 years ago, but this week adds a role as an ambassador for AFL Victoria's Road Safety Round. This coming weekend Victorian AFL teams and hundreds of community clubs will wear bold blue armbands to honour lives lost or changed by road trauma. Dangerfield doesn't need a reminder of the road safety message given the events of the mid-1990s as his mother Jeanette's brother took to the road. 'My uncle died when he was 20 and it reshaped our entire family. I was only six at the time but it shaped me because it shaped mum. It was something she never got over,' he told the Herald Sun. 'He was drink-driving and he shouldn't have been on the road. He didn't cause the accident but he was driving through some traffic lights and someone sped through a red light. It hit him and he died. 'He shouldn't have been on the road to begin with and then through a set of circumstances and poor road management he ended up passing away. Talking to dad, he says mum took five or 10 years to get over it and has always been very cautious on the roads. 'His organs were donated and funnily enough it had a positive consequence to other families. So I have a family connection, but you can see it yourself now with kids and their limited attention spans.' Dangerfield and Collingwood captain Darcy Moore will spearhead the campaign, and for the Cats skipper it is a true passion project. 'People drive past an accident and you can be angry or stressed about it because you are late to work but it has affected an entire community or family,' he said. 'When that happens to someone you know, your world is changed forever. The road safety message starts with yourself. You can only talk about it if you exhibit good behaviour and live by it. 'It's about having honest conversations with those around you and doing it in a positive way. If you are a terrible driver, pull your head in. 'Be a good role model to your kids. They see everything. The amount of people I see on their phones or texting and driving is amazing.' 'So with road safety round it's about honouring the people impacted by it and spreading that message at community clubs and also honouring the hundreds of Victorians who die on regional roads every year.'
Courier-Mail
19-07-2025
- Courier-Mail
Urgent search for three children missing from Gold Coast
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News. Police are seeking urgent assistance to locate three children reported missing from the Gold Coast since Friday. Initial information suggested a 10-year-old girl and 6-year-old boy were last seen near Mirambeena Drive in Pimpama around 8.50am, a police spokesman said, They were believed to be with a woman and baby known to them. 'They are travelling in a white Nissan X-Trail with Queensland registration 992XPS and may be in the Tenterfield area in New South Wales,' a spokesman said. 'Family and police are concerned for their welfare due to their young age.' An amber alert has not been issued but police said they held concerns for children. The girl is described as caucasian with short brown hair and brown eyes. The boy is described as caucasian, with brown hair and brown eyes. The baby is described as caucasian. The woman is described as caucasian, with dark brown hair and eyes. Anyone who may have sighted them or the vehicle is urged to contact police.
Herald Sun
26-06-2025
- Herald Sun
Ash Gordon murder: Teen who kicked doctor shared bragging video on social media
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News. A teen thug who kicked Melbourne doctor Ash Gordon in the face as he lay dying on the ground after his friend had stabbed him bragged on social media about being released from custody. The Herald Sun can reveal details about the boy's involvement in the killing of the 33-year-old Box Hill GP after his 17-year-old co-offender was found guilty of murder on Wednesday. Originally charged with murder himself, the teen, who cannot be named due to his age, pleaded guilty to lesser offences including assisting an offender, aggravated burglary, common assault and car theft. He spent fewer than 18 months in youth detention before being released this year. In March, he celebrated his new-found freedom with a video posted on social media showing him being escorted out of a youth justice centre by staff. In the footage, the teen grins as he ducks under a garage door, carrying two plastic bags, believed to hold his clothes, while a staffer warns the person filming to stop. The clip is soundtracked by the rap song Talk of the Town, which includes the lyrics: 'Man's way too lit to be walkin' around, talk of the country, not talk of the town. Get the drop on an opp, stalkin' 'em down.' The Herald Sun was barred from linking the released teen to Dr Gordon's murder until after a verdict to avoid prejudicing his co-offender's trial. He and his co-offender had been attending a house party a few doors down when they broke into Dr Gordon's Doncaster home in the early hours of January 13 last year, having earlier spotted his black Mercedes AMG in the garage. They stole several items, including Nike shoes, laptops, headphones, necklaces and a wallet, before returning to the party boasting about their loot. Just before 5am, the pair and two others returned to Dr Gordon's home intending to steal his car. The intruders woke Dr Gordon, whose bedroom was on the ground floor. 'Hello, boys,' he said, prompting the group to bolt. The doctor gave chase in his car, finding three of the teens hiding in a nearby driveway in Eildon St. 'There's no point running, the cops are on their way,' he told them. The released teen and another boy jumped a fence. But the co-offender – now convicted of murder – stayed behind and stabbed Dr Gordon six times during a scuffle. After the stabbing, the released teen returned and kicked the injured doctor in the face with such force Dr Gordon's eyes rolled into the back of his head before he and his co-offender fled. The released teen later burnt their clothes, while his co-offender filmed. 'We're done for, done for, psych, no we're not. Where's the evidence, cuz? Where's the evidence?' the teen says in the clip, as his friend laughs. The pair also discussed fleeing to the Gold Coast then Papua New Guinea, though the plan never eventuated. The teen's co-offender remains in custody and will face a pre-sentence hearing in October.
Courier-Mail
22-06-2025
- Courier-Mail
Search and rescue launched for Howard's Glenn Courtis
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News. A search and rescue operation has been launched after a vehicle was found abandoned in Childers on Saturday. Initial information indicates a dark coloured 2016 Citroen C4, bearing Queensland registration 445MC3, was located on Chews Road, Childers about 1pm on Friday, June 20. Initial information indicates, a dark coloured 2016 Citroen C4, bearing Queensland registration 445MC3, was located on Chews Road, Childers about 1pm on Friday, June 20. However, it was not reported to police until Saturday afternoon. Subsequent inquiries indicate the owner of the vehicle, 61-year-old Glenn Courtis from Howard, has not been located. Inquiries by police indicate the owner of the vehicle, 61-year-old Glenn Courtis from Howard, has not been located. Police and SES personnel commenced a search of bushland near Chews Road and the surrounding areas about 8.30am this morning, Sunday, June 22. Investigators are appealing to Glenn, or anyone with information about his whereabouts, is urged to contact Policelink.
Herald Sun
19-06-2025
- Herald Sun
Northland shopping centre Land Cruiser stolen from Ivanhoe East home
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News. The owner of the stolen 4WD that ploughed through Northland joked with his family the vehicle was his as he watched the shocking scenes unfold on a TV news bulletin. Shoppers were forced to run for their lives as the Toyota Land Cruiser sped through the Preston shopping centre about 4pm Wednesday, leaving a trail of destruction. 'I jokingly said to my family while watching it on TV… 'that's my car',' he said. 'I recognised the wheels and the trim. I wasn't sure, but it looked like my car because that model has got certain alloys on it that are different.' The owner, who doesn't want to be identified, said he was stunned when police called minutes later to tell him the vehicle that had sped just metres from terrified shoppers was in fact his. 'No more than half an hour later the police rang and said they'd found it,' he said. Police allege an electronic key reprogramming tool was used to steal the car from outside the man's home on King St in Ivanhoe East on June 2. 'It was taken from the street about 50m from my bedroom and I didn't hear anything,' the man told the Herald Sun on Thursday. 'No alarm went off, nothing. Not only that, I had a steering wheel lock.' The white 2016 Land Cruiser was found dumped on Wednesday afternoon on Beavers Rd in Northcote, about 6km away from Northland. Police arrested a 27-year-old East Melbourne man at a Hoddle Street home about 8.30am on Thursday. He was charged with an array of offences including theft of a motor vehicle, driving whilst disqualified and reckless conduct endangering life. The man said he had noticed a significant rise in car thefts in Ivanhoe East and surrounds. 'We've been living here for 25 years and lately it's just crazy,' he said. 'Just in this street there's been three car thefts. 'They want high-end cars if they can get them.' It comes after new data released by the Crime Statistics Agency on Thursday revealed motor vehicle theft in Victoria was at its highest levels since 2002. 'More than one in five cars are stolen in circumstances where the owner reports retaining their keys,' a Victoria Police statement read. 'This has coincided with an increase in offenders using electronic devices capable of programming or mimicking keys to steal cars. 'Holdens, Toyotas, and Subarus with push start technology are the most targeted cars using this methodology. 'In the last month, these makes have been stolen at two to three times the rate of the previous five years.' Police have urged owners of cars with push start technology, including Land Cruisers manufactured after 2012, to adopt 'preventative measures' to deter thieves, such as an on-board diagnostic port lock, which prevents an offender connecting a reprogramming device to the car. Read related topics: Northland
