Police appeal for clues to Sydney fires

POLICE are hunting a firebug or bugs who set fire to rubbish bins at four different unit blocks in Sydney's west.

Firefighters extinguished the blazes outside the units on Guildford Road in Guildford early on Saturday morning.

The first started about 4.50am (AEDT) in bins that were moved to the front of a unit block, damaging an area of grass and a small tree.

At 5.30am bins at another unit block were found on fire and almost immediately a third fire in bins was found in the garden of another unit block.

The fourth fire was found just after 6am in bins in the underground car park of a unit block.

Investigators have seized CCTV footage from several locations.

Police have appealed to anyone with information on the fires to contact them.

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News chopper crashes near Perth

A CHANNEL 10 news cameraman has been taken to hospital after a helicopter crash east of Perth, but the pilot has escaped uninjured.

Police said the cameraman was filming a truck rollover at Baskerville in the Swan Valley at about 11am (WST) on Saturday when the chopper crashed.

He has been taken to Royal Perth Hospital for observation, with ABC Radio reporting he may have suffered spinal injuries.

A Fire and Emergency Services Association spokesman told AAP the helicopter was on its side in a paddock with the tail section broken off.

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Madonna school-building claim rubbished

The Malawi government challenged a claim Madonna's charity built 10 schools in the African nation. Source: AAP

MALAWI education authorities have challenged a claim by American pop queen Madonna that her charity last year built 10 new schools in the poor southern African nation.

"The schools Raising Malawi claims to have constructed were already in existence," Education Minister Eunice Kazembe said.

"Raising Malawi only built 10 classroom blocks and not schools. People should know the difference between the two."

In December Madonna's charity, in tandem with global non-profit buildOn, announced the completion of 10 schools, claiming they would provide education to 4871 children.

"I am overjoyed that my commitment, along with buildOn's, to help educate the children of Malawi has come to fruition," Madonna said in a statement issued at the time.

Malawi's education minister said the country wanted to "clarify any misconceptions that may arise".

It is not the first time the diva has had trouble with education projects in the country, which is the native home of two of her adopted children.

In 2010 Madonna laid the foundation stone of an academy for girls in Chinkota village, outside the capital Lilongwe.

A year later the school project was cancelled because of mismanagement and local employees sacked.

The academy was replaced by plans to build schools to reach more children.

Madonna's charity also supports child care centres in the country where nearly one million children are orphaned by AIDS.

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Man in WA court over head-in-bag murder

A MAN accused of murdering a Perth underworld figure whose severed head was found on Rottnest Island has made a brief appearance in court.

Aaron Carlino, 28, has been charged with murdering Stephen Ramon Cookson on December 15 last year.

An 11-year-old girl found Cookson's head in a bag washed up on a beach at Porpoise Bay, on the southeast of Rottnest Island.

Police believe Cookson, 56, was killed at his rented East Perth apartment.

Forensic officers have spent several days searching the apartment and a property in Golden Bay, 60km south of Perth, but have not found the rest of Cookson's remains.

Carlino appeared in the Perth Magistrates Court on Friday wearing a grey shirt and black pants and showing little emotion.

He will appear in the Stirling Gardens Magistrates Court on February 6 via video link.

A long-time member of the seamier side of the racing industry in Victoria and WA, Cookson was convicted in WA in 2000 of one count of possessing a quantity of heroin with intent to sell or supply.

He unsuccessfully appealed that conviction all the way to the High Court.

In 2005, Cookson was fined $5000 for improper conduct by WA racing authorities, for assaulting a former horse owner Peter Graham and breaking his nose.

Cookson had been due to appear in WA's District Court on Friday on a charge of possession of methylamphetamine with intent to sell or supply.

His two co-accused appeared briefly in court on Friday and had the matter adjourned.

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Thieving Queensland public servant jailed

A SENIOR public servant who stole $55,000 from the public purse by double-dipping on a redundancy payout has broken down in tears upon being sent to jail.

Philip James Sharp, 40, will serve at least three months of a two-year sentence behind bars after pleading guilty in the Brisbane District Court to one count of aggravated fraud as an employee.

The court heard on Thursday Sharp was working as the director of human resources in the Queensland government's Department of Emergency Services in 2009, when he took a $121,963 voluntary retirement package.

Prosecutor David Meredith told the court Sharp "double-dipped" by claiming he was owed for nearly 18 years of service, when in fact he had already received a payout for most of that period during a previous redundancy package.

He said Sharp was only entitled to a three-and-a-half-year payout and had consequently been overpaid by around $55,000 on the second occasion.

Judge Julie Ryrie told Sharp it was with "real reluctance" that she sent him to jail, but said issues of public deterrence and denunciation required it.

Sharp looked shocked as he was told he would spend the next three months behind bars.

He broke down completely when hugging family members before corrective services officers led him from the dock and into the courthouse holding cells, from where he will be transferred to prison.

Sharp was originally due to be sentenced on Tuesday, however the matter was adjourned after two judges declared they had a conflict of interest in the case.

Judge Tony Rafter said his wife, who worked in the same department, had been the one who encouraged the matter be referred to police for prosecution.

Judge David Reid had excused himself because he knew one of the referees who provided a statement in Sharp's favour.

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Man charged with grooming girl

A 37-YEAR-OLD NSW man has been charged with child grooming after allegedly engaging in sexually explicit online conversations with a teenage girl.

Police say the man was arrested at Raymond Terrace after a tip-off from Queensland police, who carried out the sting late last year.

NSW detectives searched a Mayfield home on Wednesday morning and seized a number of items including computer equipment.

They later arrested the man at his workplace and charged him with using a carriage service to groom and transmit indecent communication to a person under 16.

He was granted conditional bail to appear at Raymond Terrace Local Court on February 4, 2013.

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Two child car seats given 5 star rating

ONLY two out of 15 new car child restraints have achieved the highest safety rating.

However all were found to meet basic Australian standards.

The Child Restraint Evaluation Program (CREP) ratings on 15 new car seats, using tough new standards, were released by the NSW Centre for Road Safety and the NRMA on Wednesday.

The ratings use a 5 Star system similar to the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP).

The seats tested included backward-facing restraints, forward-facing restraints and booster seats.

Only two were given five stars (excellent), eight received four stars (good), four got three stars (above average) and one was given only one star (meets Australian/NZ standards).

General manager of the NSW Centre for Road Safety, Marg Prendergast, said the ratings, which can be found on the CREP website, are designed to help inform parents before they make a purchase.

The new standard includes scores for knee forward movement in frontal impact and head protection in side impact.

A study funded by NSW Centre for Road Safety had shown that children who are restrained incorrectly are up to seven times more likely to be seriously injured in a crash, Ms Prendergast said.

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Rio Tinto holding NT govt to ransom: Mills

NT Chief Minister Terry Mills says Rio Tinto Ltd is holding him to ransom over a new gas pipeline. Source: AAP

NORTHERN Territory Chief Minister Terry Mills says mining giant Rio Tinto Ltd is holding him to ransom over a deal to save an aluminium refinery.

"They are calling the shots.

"They are putting the pressure on the territory, the territory government on behalf of the territory community and to a lesser degree the federal government," he told ABC Radio on Wednesday.

The deal is to save the refinery in Gove, which in turn would save the outback town of Nhulunbuy, which relies on the refinery and mine to sustain many of its 4000 residents.

The company that runs the mine, Rio Tinto subsidiary Pacific Aluminium, has said the facility will stay open if enough gas can be piped there to power the site economically.

The refinery is losing money because it is powered by diesel, which is expensive to buy and ship to Gove, located in eastern Arnhem Land.

The low alumina price and high Australian dollar are also making the operation unprofitable, and Pacific Aluminium has given until January 31 for a decision to be made on the pipeline.

One of the sticking points to building the $900 million pipeline is where to source the gas needed by the company.

Federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson has said Canberra will carefully consider ways to help construct the pipeline once negotiations to secure the gas have been successfully completed.

Mr Mills said Rio Tinto was not budging from the time frame for a decision that it had set.

But he said allocating Rio Tinto the 600 petajoules (PJ) of gas it requires for the refinery over the next 20 years could leave the territory without enough gas for its own needs.

"It is not just about Rio, for goodness sake, it is about the Northern Territory and our exposure in the years to come," Mr Mills said.

"Do we trade that secure supply without having that covered to allow this deal to be struck?"

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Sea level rise 'linked to climate change'

Scientists have rejected claims there is no link between global warming and rising sea levels. Source: AAP

SCIENTISTS have rejected claims that the latest research on climate change finds no link between global warming and rising sea levels.

CSIRO scientist Dr John Church, regarded as Australia's leading authority on sea level and climate change, said they were clearly connected.

"It is clearly linked to increases in greenhouse gases," he said.

"Sea level has already increased the rate of rise from the 18th and 19th century. The instrumental record would indicate an acceleration during the 20th century and the projections will indicate a further acceleration during the 21st century."

Similarly, Professor Thomas Stocker, co-chairman of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) working group on the physical science of climate change, said sea level rise had been considered for many decades and the observations of its rise were unequivocal.

"The further really essential focus that our assessment will have is what is sea level doing in response to the increased concentration of greenhouse gases," he said.

Both were speaking at a media briefing ahead of the IPCC meeting in Hobart this week to review the latest draft of its fifth assessment of climate change. That will be considered by the IPCC in Stockholm in September.

The Australian newspaper reported on Tuesday that the latest science on sea levels found no link to global warming or the increased rate of glacier melting.

Dr Scott Power, of the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, said extreme temperatures, heatwaves and bushfires were part and parcel of summer in Australia.

But climate change was increasing the likelihood and intensity of such extremities.

"So far in Australia we have seen warming of about 0.9 degrees Celsius since 1910 and.....increases are projected to be much higher than that if emissions aren't brought down over the coming decades," he said.

"So these sorts of events will become increasingly more common and the temperature records that are set will tend to go up with each passing decade."

Dr Power said that didn't mean there wouldn't be very cold periods as the climate system wasn't wholly determined by humans.

"It is clear that these sorts of things do become more common under climate change and it is clear that Australia has warned up, the world has warmed up and coastal seal levels have warmed up, global sea levels have warmed up," he said.

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Vic firefighters prepare for scorcher

Victorians have been told to prepare as temperatures rise in Australia's south-east on Thursday. Source: AAP

VICTORIAN firefighters are bracing for a scorcher with temperatures expected to soar on Thursday.

A Country Fire Authority spokeswoman said severe weather warnings are expected for the Wimmera, central, southwest and north central districts, and a total fire ban may also be declared for Thursday.

"It's going to be 39 degrees in Melbourne and (around) 40 degrees in other parts of the state," she told AAP on Tuesday.

"Obviously that's a bit of risk."

Premier Ted Baillieu urged Victorians travelling in high fire-prone areas to stay in touch with the appropriate agencies, through radio stations and local networks.

"We urge all Victorians, particularly those in holiday areas and those travelling, to make sure they understand the risks involved, that those with fire plans who are on their own properties understand those, go through those plans again, and they take all the precautions necessary," Mr Baillieu told journalists on Tuesday.

Containment lines at a controlled fire in the state's southwest have also been strengthened to protect against the predicted scorcher, said Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment state agency commander Graeme Davis.

About 120 firefighters are continuing to work on containment lines at the Kentbruck blaze, which has burnt 11,964 hectares of national park, forest plantation and agricultural land.

"We're making sure containment lines are strong so it can withstand the next severe weather day on Thursday," Mr Davis told AAP.

"It's under control. We're just continuing to burn out unburnt fuel from what's left of the fire and containment lines."

Mr Davis says it could take weeks before the fire is blacked out.

Firefighters battled for about two-and-a-half hours to control a five-hectare grassfire in central Victoria that broke out about 4am (AEDT) on Tuesday.

The fire at Pipers Creek near Kyneton, around 85km northwest of Melbourne, was burning in dense grass and scrub, making it tough for the 19 crews to access, CFA district operations officer Craig Brittain said.

The cause of the fire will be investigated, along with a blaze that burned 350 hectares of grassland at Little River, southwest of Melbourne, on Monday.

It took 40 CFA crews and four aircraft almost four hours to control the fire, which took hold about 3.30pm (AEDT).

Aircrane Elvis had to leave the fire after a problem with one of its two engines, says Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley.

An additional heavy firebombing helicopter will cover for Elvis as it's repaired on Tuesday.

Elvis is expected to be back in action on Wednesday.

The CFA said fortunately there were no reported stock or property losses but the fire was being treated as suspicious.

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Drug producer busted after calling police

A MAN became the architect of his own demise when he called police over a violent home invasion and they uncovered his secret cannabis crop.

Thomas Anthony Bishop, 33, phoned police in June last year after armed offenders broke into his home at Kedron, in Brisbane's north, and assaulted him and his heavily pregnant partner.

When officers arrived to investigate, they were greeted by an overpowering smell of cannabis.

The Supreme Court in Brisbane heard on Monday that police had searched under the house and found a hydroponic set-up with nine plants.

They also found a small quantity of other drugs in the house along with various equipment for growing the cannabis.

Bishop pleaded guilty to four drug offences including producing and possessing a dangerous drug.

He also faced court on Monday for a drug offence in 2010, when police caught him with 85 grams of methylamphetamine, or "ice", in a raid on one of his friend's homes.

The court heard he had a serious addiction at that time, and that he was using up to 10 grams of the drug each week so he could continue his painting business despite pain from some earlier sporting accidents.

Bishop's lawyer, Bruce Mumford, said he had made several attempts to rehabilitate himself.

Justice Martin Daubney warned Bishop that the best reason he had for mending his ways was so he could see his young children grow up.

He sentenced Bishop to three years' jail, and ordered he be released on parole in March.

Bishop has already served more than six months in pre-sentence custody.

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Fallen firefighter had 30 years experience

Peter Ronald Cramer, who died during the Tasmanian bushfire, is said to be a skilled firefighter. Source: AAP

A VICTORIAN man who died while fighting bushfires in Tasmania was a firefighter of 30 years' experience who had recently passed a fitness exam.

Peter Ronald Cramer, 61, from Tyers in Victoria's Gippsland region, died on Sunday while assisting backburning operations at Taranna, east of Hobart.

The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) firefighter had been working on foot to identify potential containment lines on the southern boundary of the Forcett fire about two to three kilometres from the active fire edge.

DSE chief fire officer Alan Goodwin said Mr Cramer had been a DSE firefighter for more than 30 years and a CFA volunteer for more than two decades.

He was a DSE training co-ordinator who also volunteered his time to train CFA volunteers.

"Peter was a well-respected and trusted member of the DSE community," Mr Goodwin told reporters in Melbourne.

"He was a very experienced firefighter.

"He spent a lot of time training and advising a lot of our younger firefighters coming through.

"He knew the bush, and it's a sad loss."

Mr Cramer was one of more than 70 Victorian emergency services workers sent to Tasmania on Thursday to help fight the state's devastating fires, which have destroyed more than 130 homes since January 4.

He was due to return home on Tuesday but was found dead at 5pm (AEDT) on Sunday on a bush track after he failed to make a scheduled call-in.

Mr Goodwin said the cause of death was unknown, and Mr Cramer had recently passed a fitness test.

"Certainly all our firefighters that we send away, all our firefighters go through our fit-for-fire program, through medical testing and so forth, and Peter was certainly part of that," he said.

Mr Goodwin said he first met Mr Cramer on a deployment to the US in 2003.

"He was always fun, he greeted you with a smile and a solid handshake, and that's how I will remember him," he said.

Mr Goodwin said the most important thing now was to support Mr Cramer's wife Julie and their children.

In a statement, Mr Cramer's wife and family said they wanted to "express how truly well-loved Peter was by everyone who knew him".

Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley said losing a firefighter had come as a shock.

"To lose someone in active duty is something you don't plan for," he said.

"We take our caps off to what Peter has done in three decades of service to Victoria through firefighting."

A CFA spokesman said Mr Cramer's colleagues at Swifts Creek and Tyers, where he was a member, had been devastated by the news.

He said Mr Cramer was very well known and well regarded in the Gippsland region because of his work as a trainer.

Mr Cramer would volunteer his time to work with "dozens and dozens and dozens" of new recruits, he said.

"He was a pretty remarkable person," the spokesman said.

"He really dedicated his life to fire management.

"We're supporting his brigade and those in Gippsland who will be feeling his loss pretty deeply."

The Tasmanian and Victorian premiers have sent their condolences to his family.

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Volcano erupting in Russia's Far East

A VOLCANO erupting in Russia's Far East is sending plumes of gas and ash high into the sky and creating a lava lake.

The Plosky Tolbachik volcano is located in Kamchatka peninsula, hundreds of kilometres from the nearest residential areas.

Gennady Karpov, a volcano expert at Russia's Academy of Sciences in the Far East, said: "There were no lava lakes at Kamchatka volcanos before now. We have never seen this before."

Plosky Tolbachik has emitted jets of hot lava up to 200 metres high.

Its last eruption had occurred in November after the volcano was dormant for almost 40 years.

Russian officials say the current eruptions are not likely to end any time soon but that they aren't affecting flight patterns over Russia.

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Mubarak questioned over alleged gifts

Hosni Mubarak has been interrogated over gifts he allegedly received from the Al Ahram newspaper. Source: AAP

OUSTED president Hosni Mubarak has been interrogated over gifts worth millions of Egyptian pounds he allegedly received from the country's top newspaper as a show of loyalty while he was in power.

Mubarak is serving a life sentence after being convicted for failing to stop killings of protesters during 2011 uprising.

He was moved to a Cairo military hospital last month after slipping inside a prison bathroom and injuring himself.

A security official says Mubarak was questioned on Saturday over watches, pens, bags, belts and jewellery he reportedly received from the official Al Ahram newspaper.

Mubarak's lawyers and the newspaper could not immediately be reached for comment.

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