Alleged Crimes of The East

By Gary Larson on January 26, 2022 in News

Thirsty Merc
A 43-year-old Eastlakes woman is said to have blown almost four times the legal alcohol limit after she led police on a pursuit in her silver Mercedes.
Just before midnight on a Friday, Botany Bay Highway Patrol officers allegedly saw the Merc swerving between lanes on Gardeners Road, Kingsford.
“The driver allegedly failed to stop as directed by police and continued through two red traffic lights onto Anzac Parade,” said a police press release. There was a “brief pursuit” before the driver stopped at Meeks Street.
After a roadside breath test yielded a positive result, the driver was arrested and taken to Maroubra Police Station. There she underwent a secondary breath analysis, which is said to have returned a staggeringly high reading of 0.195. Her licence was suspended and she was charged with a string of offences.

High Proportion of Drug-positive Drivers
More than 12 per cent of drivers drug-tested in the latest Eastern Suburbs blitz yielded a positive result, while 3 per cent blew over the alcohol limit.
The figures were revealed by Traffic and Highway Command after conducting ‘Operation Fume’ with the assistance of Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command.
Operation Fume also saw an extension of the coke-dealing crackdown that took place at the end of last year. There were cocaine arrests after two vehicle stops in Bondi. And in Vaucluse, police dog Gilly led officers to an interesting discovery inside another stopped car – “a sophisticated hidden compartment containing 25 bags of cocaine and $1,000 in cash”.

Coogee Infant Died in Unsafe Daycare Centre
Unsafe conditions at a Randwick daycare centre contributed to the death of a seven-month-old Coogee boy.
That was the finding of Deputy State Coroner Derek Lee at the end of an inquest into the death of Jack Loh at the Rhythm and Rhyme centre.
Following the death of Jack in March 2017, the centre and its operator, Kidstart, closed down. Police and the NSW Education Department had found evidence of multiple compliance breaches. Kidstart and two of its staff were prosecuted.
The inquest heard that the cause of Jack’s death was undiagnosed pulmonary hypertension – a type of high blood pressure affecting the lungs. However, Deputy Coroner Lee said unsafe sleeping conditions at the centre contributed to his death.
Jack was placed alone inside an unventilated room where the temperature was almost 30 degrees. Although his mother Margot had provided a sleep suit for him to wear during his nap, his carer left him fully-clothed, with a blanket loosely wrapped around him. There was no baby monitor in the room and staff did not check on him for 40 minutes. A further crucial lapse was the fact that he was stomach-down in a bassinet that was too small for him, meaning he was unable to roll over. This was despite cots being available.
Deputy Coroner Lee recommended that the use of bassinets should be banned in childcare settings and that compulsory staff training be introduced in safe sleep training.

Man Stole From Multiple Cars – Police
Officers from Eastern Beaches Police Area Command have arrested a man they say has been breaking into and stealing from parked cars in the Little Bay and La Perouse areas.
They say the 31-year-old, who was wanted on three outstanding warrants, is linked to “multiple steal from motor vehicle and fraud-related offences” and have thanked the community for its assistance in bringing the alleged offender to justice.

Watch Out for Two Bob Watch Scammers
Eastern Suburbs Police have warned about a re-occurring scam being used around the Bondi area.
“A well-dressed scammer approaches staff at a store or café, telling them their car is broken down and they need anywhere between $150 to $300 cash to help pay for a new battery/fuel/towing or tyre,” police said on Facebook.
“The scammer proceeds to guarantee the victim they will pay them back, providing their phone number so they can be reached for reimbursement or a worthless watch as “collateral” for the payment.
“Once the cash is given and the scammer has left, the phone number is found to be out of service, the watch is only worth a few dollars and the victim never gets reimbursed.”
Police say the scam “preys on the generosity and compassion of Good Samaritans.”