What we learned; Tuesday, 30 January
Here are today’s main stories:
Queensland remains at risk of further flooding after heavy rain in the Moreton Bay region, with schools closed and roads badly damaged;
Administrative errors and Covid-19 are to blame for missing national security-related cabinet documents from 2003, an inquiry has found;
More than 13 tonnes of disposable vapes with a street value of $4.5m have been seized by Australian Border Force officers;
Adobe casts doubt on claim ‘automation’ caused outfit of Victorian MP Georgie Purcell to appear more revealing;
NSW coroner refers death of Dunghutti teenager Jai Wright to Department of Public Prosecutions; and
Two Aboriginal children stranded in the UK without passports or visas since 2020 while courts decided their guardianship must be immediately brought home, the nation’s peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children says.
We will see you back here for more news tomorrow morning.
Updated
Arrest over series of arson attacks in Melbourne
A man has been arrested over a string of suspicious fires in Melbourne which are believed to be linked to a dispute between crime syndicates over illegal tobacco, AAP report.
The Epping man, 25, was arrested in Bundoora in Melbourne’s north just after 3pm on Tuesday.
Detective Inspector Graham Banks told reporters it’s believed the man is a “significant ring leader” who acted for a crime gang.
Investigators allege the man is in contact with the head of the syndicate based overseas and had been coordinating the fires.
The 25-year-old is being interviewed over several arson attacks on Melbourne businesses from October to December in 2023.
They include fires at a smash repair business in Williamstown, a Glenroy tobacco store, a Tullamarine reception centre, two blazes at a Docklands restaurant and another at a different Docklands restaurant.
Victoria Police have said it’s believed Middle Eastern organised crime groups and outlaw motorcycle gangs are in competition for profits from illicit tobacco and use low-level criminals to carry out attacks.
Updated
