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man on porn charges
A Pascoe Vale man faces multiple charges relating to the online exploitation of more than 20 children. The 31-year-old man allegedly used fake identities to groom girls, aged 11 to 16, on social networking sites. Police said he coerced the children into sending him sexually explicit videos and pictures of themselves. The man was arrested at a business in Hawthorn last Tuesday and appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court charged with two counts of blackmail, two of stalking and four relating to transmitting child pornography. Police searched the man’s house and seized mobile phones and computers. Taskforce Astraea was established in early 2012 to crack down on online sexual crimes against children. \ BD
GOT A STORY FOR US? NEWS EDITOR \ Gordon Farrer gfarrer@theweeklyreview.com.au 9249 5279 BEAU DONELLY \ bdonelly@theweeklyreview.com.au 9249 5240 ALANA SCHETZER \ aschetzer@theweeklyreview.com.au 9249 5233
tunnel on collision course with values east-west link
A leading real-estate body has rebuffed suggestions that home owners whose properties will sit above the contentious east-west link will face lower valuations. The response follows claims from a law firm that more than 200 property owners across Fitzroy and Collingwood could be entitled to compensation from the state government. The project’s Comprehensive Impact Statement, which was released in early November, revealed 198 residential and 19 commercial properties will sit above the cross-city tunnel. Real Estate Institute of Victoria chief executive officer Enzo Raimondo said construction will “certainly” create amenity issues for home owners but rejected claims it would translate into lower property values. “If we think more long-term about this project, the increased connectivity of the east-west link does provide overall benefits to the broader community,” he said. “This may see increased capital growth in suburbs such as Kensington, Flemington and Travancore that will have more direct access to the Eastern Freeway and jobs in the eastern suburbs and vice versa.”
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Law firm Slater & Gordon has advised affected residents that they could be entitled to money based on the argument that property titles extend to the centre of the Earth. Slater & Gordon practice group leader Ben Hardwick said compensation would depend on whether the property title needed to be re-issued since 1891. “For example, if a property has been
subdivided since that time, there might have been a need to create a new title,” he said. “However, we believe that property owners are probably entitled to compensation irrespective of whether their title goes to the centre of the Earth or only down to 15 metres.” He said owners would be obliged to inform would-be buyers that a major tunnel is to be located under their land, a disclosure that would result in a loss of property value. The estimated $8 to $10 billion east-west link will connect the Eastern Freeway to the Western Ring Road. A tunnel is planned to go under homes in Collingwood, Clifton Hill and Fitzroy as part of stage one to connect the Eastern Freeway to CityLink. The project is being challenged by Yarra City Council and residents. Property valuer Brian Dudakov disagreed with Mr Raimondo, saying that based on past experiences, properties affected by subterranean easements or tunnels are “considered less desirable compared with unencumbered properties, particularly prior to and during the construction phase, translating into a lower market value”. \ ALANA SCHETZER
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