news

Friday's news in 5 minutes.

1. Man charged after hitting 10-month-old with mobile phone and repeatedly pricking him with safety pin while on Sydney train.

A 22-year-old man who allegedly assaulted a 10-month-old baby boy while on a Sydney train in full view of other passengers was on parole for six previous assaults, a court has heard.

The man was arrested after witnesses saw him allegedly assaulted the boy while they were travelling northbound towards Sydney from the Central Coast on Tuesday night. Police arrested him after passengers rang Triple-0 when witnesses claimed he was pushing safety pins into the hysterical baby and hitting him with a mobile phone.

A police statement of facts, reported by News Limited claims the man tried to prick the baby around the ears with a safety pin.

“Between Central and Woy Woy the accused was seen to utilise a safety pin to repeatedly prick the child around the ear and neck region, in an attempt to pierce the ear of the child,” the police facts read.

“Throughout the journey the accused was also seen to hit the child in the head multiple times with his mobile phone. During the trip the child was dropped on the ground of the train, landing on his head.

“The child appeared distressed and was crying hysterically and the accused and (the child’s mother) told the child to ‘shut up’.”

ADVERTISEMENT

The man, refused bail, called out to the child’s mother as he was being led into custody: “I love you, I will call you as soon as I can.”

2. 15-year-old gang raped at party in Sydney.

A teenage girl has been allegedly gang raped by three teenage boys at a party in Western Sydney.

The attack allegedly in Mount Druitt at a friend of the girl’s home occurred in May.

Three teenagers have been arrested over the alleged rape of the 15-year-old. A 15-year-old boy was arrested a day after the rape and charged with four counts of aggravated sexual intercourse with person aged 14-16 reports The Daily Telegraph.

A 17-year-old was arrested on Tuesday. A second 17-year-old, on bail for unrelated offences, was arrested yesterday and charged with two counts of aggravated sexual assault in company and breaching bail.

All three were refused bail.

3. Judge overseeing Royal Commission into child detention’s once gave a man a one-month prison term for anally raping a 15-year-old girl and assaulting her with a boomerang.

It has been reported that the judge appointed to oversee the Royal Commission into child detention, former Northern Territory Chief Justice Brian Martin once gave a man a one-month prison term for anally raping a 15-year-old girl and assaulting her with a boomerang.

Yesterday Justice Martin was appointed to oversee the Royal Commission that will probe the failings of the Northern Territory’s youth detention systems since 2006.

News Limited reports that the now retired judge once sentenced a man from the Yarralin community in the Territory’s west, who anally raped and assaulted a young girl he considered be his promised bride, to just one month in jail.

ADVERTISEMENT

In his sentencing remarks Justice Martin said that the man’s “fundamental beliefs” may have “prevented you from realising that the child was not consenting”.

“I appreciate that it is a very difficult thing for men who have been brought up in traditional ways which permit physical violence and sexual intercourse with promised wives, even if they are not consenting, to adjust their ways,” the judge said.

4. Malcolm Turnbull will personally decide whether Australia should nominate Kevin Rudd to become United Nations secretary-general.

Cabinet has left the decision on whether Australia should nominate Kevin Rudd to become United Nations secretary-general in the hands of the PM after a lengthy and cabinet meeting in Canberra.

The PM said at a press conference he will let Mr Rudd know of his captain’s call before announcing the decision today.

“We’ve considered this issue and I owe Mr Rudd a telephone call before I say anything more about it publicly,” he said.

Of the 12 declared candidates, Antonio Guterres, former prime minister of Portugal, is considered a frontrunner.

5. Woman died from ‘untreated side-effects’ of taking the contraceptive pill.

A British woman has died from taking the pill, three weeks after her GP told her to go to a day spa to treat her ‘back problem’.

The Mirror reports Charlotte Foster, 23, was seen by her GP after complaining to friends and family of breathing difficulties and leg pain.

ADVERTISEMENT

An inquest heard she collapsed from a “massive” pulmonary embolism, the hearing was told Ms Foster’s “only risk factor” was that she had been taking a combined oral contraceptive pill, Dianette, for around five months before her death.

Her mother told of how Ms Foster complained of back pain, pain in her right leg, tightness of her chest and being unable to take a deep breath.

The coroner ruled she died from the untreated side-effects of Dianette.

6. Indonesia executes prisoners in first execution since Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.

The execution of four of the 14 prisoners in Indonesia scheduled overnight have taken place.

Seventeen ambulances carrying 14 coffins arrived yesterday at Nusa Kambangan prison island prompting speculation that the executions were to take place. Then Indonesia officials summoned Nigerian and Pakistani embassy officials to Nusa Kambangan on Tuesday, advising officials the prisoners would face the firing squad last night.

Indonesian law requires death-row prisoners and relatives be given 72 hours notice in an execution.

But confusingly after a major thunderstorm delayed proceedings, only four of the 14 scheduled executions went ahead. It is not known why the others were spared.

Several of the prisoners, Indonesian woman Merri Utami, Nigerian restaurateur Humphrey Jefferson Ejike Eleweke and Pakistani father of six Zulfiqar Ali, claimed they are innocent.

ADVERTISEMENT

Attorney-General Muhammad Prasetyo said he hoped the actions of Indonesia were understood. “What we are doing is for the good of this nation.” he said.

7. Rio athletes told: keep your mouth closed when in the water.

As if Athletes competing at Rio don’t have enough to worry about with reports of substandard accommodation and security fears, not to mention Zika, they have now been told to keep their mouths closed if they are competing on the water.

According to USA Today tons of raw sewage are pumped into Guanabara Bay each day where the sailing and windsurfing events will take place at next month’s Olympics.

The newspaper writes: “A giant pipe running from downtown churns human waste into the marina at certain times each day. Rats roam around in the waste. The stench makes uninitiated visitors feel like vomiting or fainting.”

According to the report officials will put a special chemical in the water to make the TV viewers believe it’s clean.

“A short-term water treatment policy that will allow television networks to show glorious blue panoramic shots.”

But at water level, where the athletes will compete it’s a different story with health experts concerned.

Afrodite Zegers, a member of the Dutch sailing team, has been practising in Guanabara Bay said “We just have to keep our mouths closed when the water sprays up.”

Do you have a story to share with Mamamia? Email us news@mamamia.com.au