The Melbourne Snap⚡- Wednesday 12 February
Gunshots in Altona, Liam Neeson helps mate in eastern suburbs, Melbourne locations in Apple Cider Vinegar and is youth crime really getting worse?
G’day and welcome back to The Melbourne Snap. Here’s a summary of news and events from around our city in the last 24 hours. I’m not infallible, let me know if you think I’ve missed something important or useful. Now on to Wednesday’s edition.
🚨A hot topic at the moment is youth crime and events yesterday put the issue at the top of the news agenda again.
➡️A 15-year-old, described as one of Victoria's worst youth offenders, has been arrested again following a series of aggravated burglaries in Caulfield South and Beaumaris on February 7, where vehicles, wallets, and watches were stolen.
➡️Charged with multiple offences in Melbourne’s south, he faced a children’s court yesterday and was remanded in custody.
➡️He has reportedly been bailed 50 times in the past - Gillian Lantouris, Nine News/Victoria Police
🚓Meanwhile, in the eastern suburbs, five teenagers (one as young as 13) were charged following a series of alleged burglaries and a carjacking. Three were granted bail after appearing in court. The group reportedly stole cigarettes from two service stations and engaged in multiple car theft attempts, culminating in an aggravated carjacking. - Victoria Police
➡️ Is youth crime as bad as it seems or is it just media sensationalism? Answer: it’s getting worse. Youth crime hit a 15-year peak in 2024, and the latest data from the Crime Statistics Agency shows criminal incidents are at the highest level since statistics started being recorded in 2004. Expect it to be a major voting issue come election time.
☀️ Wednesday weather
Crime Watch
This section is dedicated to crime news. Scroll on if you want to skip to lighter news.
🔫 Police are investigating after multiple gunshots were fired into a Mills Street home in Altona North around 1:45 am. No one was injured, and the investigation is ongoing. - Victoria Police
🔥 A 46-year-old Windsor woman was arrested after allegedly starting a fire and assaulting an attendant at a Punt Road service station around 12:30 am. - Victoria Police
🚗 Cops are appealing for witnesses after a man stole a Ford sedan with the owner in the boot in Essendon on 27 December. The offender ditched the vehicle in Brunswick West and fled on foot. Police have released CCTV of a man who may assist with their inquiries. - Victoria Police
⚫Police have made a public appeal for more information after a 77-year-old man died from being struck by a tram at the corner of Elizabeth and Bourke streets in the CBD on 30 January. He died on 7 February in hospital. - Victoria Police
🚑 A 41-year-old man was critically injured in a hit-and-run yesterday morning in the north-west of the city. He was struck by a car on Main Road East, St Albans, around 4:11 am. The driver of a white sedan failed to stop after the collision and continued driving east. - Victoria Police
❓ If you have a community event, news, announcement or new business you want to share, please fill in this form here. If it’s suitable it’ll go in the noticeboard section.
🏡Movie star Liam Neeson is using his very particular set of skills to help promote a house sale in Melbourne’s south-east. The Academy Award-nominated actor is friends with a Glen Waverley homeowner and his family. - realestate.com.au
📻Melbourne radio legend Philip Brady has died aged 85. Last week Brady announced his retirement from 3AW after nearly 67 years in the broadcasting industry. Brady passed away yesterday morning after a short battle with cancer. - 3AW
🏘️HousingFirst, one of Victoria's largest community housing providers, is facing criticism for leaving apartments empty for over a year and failing to address maintenance issues such as broken windows and rotting possums. - Cait Kelly, Guardian Australia
➡️ Tenants have raised concerns about rising rents, unaddressed repairs, and a lack of transparency regarding vacancies, with some even resorting to VCAT hearings to force the provider to fix urgent issues.
➡️ HousingFirst owns and/or manages a range of long-term community housing across 13 council areas throughout Melbourne.
🧘🏻♀️Who’s been watching the Netflix mini-series Apple Cider Vinegar? The hit show recounts the story of Belle Gibson, the Australian influencer who falsely claimed to have cured herself of brain cancer through natural methods, building a wellness empire on the lie. Set mostly in Melbourne, Broadsheet has found nine city venues featured in the series - Stephanie Vigilante and Audrey Payne, Broadsheet
🏎️Australian Grand Prix’s 2025 music lineup has been released and UK dance act Fatboy Slim is set to headline. - Grand Prix
🏫Parents at South Melbourne Park Primary School are frustrated by the annual disruptions caused by the Grand Prix, which prevents school access for two days. They’re calling for compensation - ABC
🧒More than 660 Victorian children were locked out or unaccounted for across the state’s childcare services last financial year, with more than 6100 serious incidents reported, a new report has revealed. - Herald Sun
🚫A coroner has recommended banning overnight alcohol deliveries after Melbourne woman Kathleen Arnold, 30, died with a blood-alcohol level at least 11 times the legal driving limit. - Blair Jackson, news.com.au
🚆 Today the V/Line will operate extreme heat timetables on Seymour/Shepparton, Bendigo/Swan Hill/Echuca and Ballarat/Ararat/Maryborough lines. - PTV
💼The City of Melton Council is on a bit of a mini-hiring spree with 11 roles open right now. - View job openings
📢Community Noticeboard📢
📌”A 2-hour city treasure hunt event with a twist happening on the 16th Feb from 10am to 4pm. The Kindness Quest is a fun treasure hunt that spreads kindness throughout the city. Be the fastest and kindest to win prizes worth $500! - more details
📌”Have a chat and reconnect! Chatty Cafe is a global movement to help bring people together, reduce social isolation and build social connections within the local community. Chatty Cafe events are being held in a variety of locations across Bayside.” - more details
Have your news, event, gathering, new business or community update featured here. Fill in this form.
☕And finally…Going to a Starbucks for coffee in Melbourne is like going to a Michelin-star restaurant and asking for chicken nuggets. There are so many better options in the world’s coffee capital. So perhaps it’s not surprising the famous global coffee chain is closing a store on Exhibition Street in the CBD.
Thank you for reading edition 61 of The Melbourne Snap.
This newsletter is 100% independent, free for all and has 470 subscribers. It’s written in the early hours every weekday morning after I finish my day job (which is actually a night job). If you enjoy it please spread the word, buy me a coffee or consider becoming a paid supporter Thank you, see you tomorrow.
