Sydney radio host Roman Butchaski vanishes during Queensland fishing trip in crocodile-infested waters

Published

6 months ago

November 14, 2023

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A major air and land search is under way for a former Sydney radio presenter who went missing on a solo fishing trip in crocodile-infested waters in remote Queensland.

Roman Butchaski has been missing since Sunday and only his vehicle and fishing gear have been found so far.

Mr Butchaski used to co-host a fishing show on the 2GB radio station and is said to have been going to the area for years.

The region is well known as a hotspot for crocodiles, but there’s also the possibility he may be lost or had a medical emergency.

2GB host Ben Fordham told listeners “a major search and rescue operation is now under way” in an area nearly 400 miles north of Cairns, on the Cape York peninsula.

Harry Clarke, a journalist from Country Caller, told the station Mr Butchaski was “last seen at 8am on Sunday heading off towards the Olive River, which is in far north Queensland”.

He said he had borrowed a buggy from a friend and travelled about an hour to the river.

“All they’ve found of Butch is that vehicle with some personal effects such as a fishing rod… and he hasn’t been seen since,” said Mr Clarke.

The region is established crocodile habitat and the area he was travelling to is a tidal saltwater river.

“I’m devastated – Butchy walks the banks up there regularly. He’s been fishing there forever,” said Gavin Pitchford, Mr Butchaski’s co-host on the fishing programme.

He said his friend has diabetes, so there’s a possibility he may have had a medical issue.

Police said a helicopter and on-foot search teams had been looking for a man in his 60s since Sunday night.

They said extra officers were being drafted in to help.

Crocodiles can be found in both freshwater and saltwater in Queensland, including rivers, swamps, oceans and the offshore islands of the Great Barrier Reef.

In May, a man described how he managed to prise a crocodile’s jaws from around his head when he was attacked near a luxury resort in the state.

World

Georgia: ‘We will not give up’ – protesters and police in tense standoff on streets of Tbilisi

Published

6 hours ago

May 13, 2024

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Georgia: 'We will not give up' - protesters and police in tense standoff on streets of Tbilisi

Tens of thousands of Georgians have taken to the streets in Tbilisi – protesting against a proposed law threatening press and civic freedoms.

The “foreign agents” bill has sparked a political crisis amid concerns it is modelled on laws used by Vladimir Putin to crack down on the media in Russia – and if passed, would make it harder for Georgia to join the EU.

Sky’s international affairs editor Dominic Waghorn is in Tbilisi:

The Georgian security forces moved in shortly after dawn this morning. Phalanxes of masked men sweeping through streets and parks outside parliament.

They kettled protesters with force. We were caught in the crush as they squeezed the crowd.

A woman screamed as she was pinned to a post by the press of people.

Crowds had ringed the parliament building all night – intent on stopping MPs from voting on laws that demonstrators believe put Georgia on the path to dictatorship, and back in the embrace of Moscow.

“They want to drag us back to autocracy, to the country they occupied us for too many years,” one protester told Sky News.

The police succeeded in clearing one entrance to parliament.

Flank after flank of interior ministry security forces backed by helmeted riot police and water cannon trucks are now in a tense standoff with a multi-coloured sea of protesters on the corner of the parliament building.

The blue and green colours of Ukraine and the European Union jostle with the reds and white of Georgia’s national colours.

The protesters have been peaceful, but the police have not. They have unleashed snatch squads barrelling into the crowd.

Sky News witnessed masked security forces seizing one man and raining blows on his unprotected head.

The protesters have failed in their effort to cut off parliament from MPs, but their numbers are swelling.

“We will not give up,” one woman told us.

“We cannot allow them to take our freedom.”

The government was forced to shelve the law last year in the face of bitter opposition but the Georgian Dream ruling party, regarded by many as pro-Russian, is determined to see it passed.

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Russian defence minister and long-time Putin ally Sergei Shoigu to be replaced

Published

15 hours ago

May 12, 2024

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Russian defence minister and long-time Putin ally Sergei Shoigu to be replaced

Russia’s defence minister is set to be replaced, more than two years into the war in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed replacing his long-time ally, Sergei Shoigu, with civilian and former deputy prime minister Andrei Belousov, who specialises in economics.

Mr Shoigu, who has served as defence minister since 2012, will take up a role as head of the national security council and have responsibilities for the military-industrial complex, the Kremlin said.

Ukraine war latest: Putin reshuffle points to ‘serious instability’

In his new role, Mr Shoigu will replace Nikolai Patrushev, whose new job will be announced soon, according to the Kremlin.

Mr Putin’s press secretary Dmitriy Peskov said the president decided the ministry of defence should be headed by a civilian to be “open to innovation and advanced ideas”.

The shuffle could also be seen as an attempt by Mr Putin to scrutinise defence spending after a Shoigu ally, deputy defence minister Timur Ivanov, was accused by state prosecutors of taking a bribe.

But the changes make sense, Mr Peskov claims, because Russia is approaching a situation like the Soviet Union in the mid-1980s, when the military and law enforcement authorities accounted for 7.4% of spending.

Former MI6 intelligence officer, Christopher Steele, who ran the Russia desk between 2006 and 2009, told Sky News he takes Mr Peskov’s words “with a pinch of salt”.

“It seems to me that probably the reason he’s chosen Belousov is because he’s not really any kind of player in the system or any sort of threat to Putin,” he added.

He also said Mr Patrushev’s appointment may hint at instability “right underneath him in the top leadership”.

“It was clear to most of us Russia-watchers for some time that Patrushev was lining up his son, Dmitry, who’s the current agriculture minister, to be Putin’s successor as president,” he said.

“And there have been some indications that there’s been some serious instability at the top in Russia in recent months… so I think that this really is a very significant move by Putin.”

Commenting on Mr Shoigu’s removal, the UK’s defence minister Grant Shapps said he leaves with a “disastrous legacy”.

“Sergei Shoigu has overseen over 355,000 casualties among his own soldiers and mass civilian suffering with an illegal campaign in Ukraine,” he said.

“Russia needs a defence minister who would undo that disastrous legacy and end the invasion – but all they’ll get is another of Putin’s puppets.”

A huge surprise – but what do these changes mean for Putin?

This has come as a huge surprise. Not one, but two key figures in Russia’s military leadership structure sacked simultaneously.

It suggests there’s a lot more going on inside the Kremlin than meets the eye.

Shoigu is a very close Putin ally and has been for years. So why replace him?

Clearly Putin is unhappy with the direction of the war. This coincides with Russia’s attempt to open up a new front in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine. New directions and new leadership – Putin’s ringing the changes.

Shoigu’s successor speaks volumes. Andrei Belousov is an economist, a technocrat. He’s not an obvious choice to run the military, but this underlines where Putin’s concerns are right now – “how much longer can I afford the war?”.

Russia’s entire economy is geared towards the military right now. He wants to ensure it’s operating as efficiently as possible, so his war can continue.

Shoigu moves to the security council, where he’ll replace Patrushev. Technically it’s a more important role, but in reality it’s a demotion.

More importantly, by replacing Patrushev, it gives Putin more command over a powerful body within Russia’s leadership structure.

The security council was seen by some as a pseudo shadow cabinet. He’ll now have an ally in post, albeit a disgruntled one.

Finally, to me, this speaks to Putin’s confidence right now. The start of the new presidential term, he’s clearly emboldened. But it also screams instability.

Parliament’s approval of the new appointments are all but guaranteed, as there is virtually no opposition.

By law, the government in Russia had to resign just before Mr Putin was sworn in as president for another six-year term on Tuesday.

Analysts have said he is looking to project an image of stability and satisfaction with his team’s progress, with Mikhail Mishustin remaining in post as prime minister on Friday.

As he continues to confirm his top team, Mr Putin has also proposed Sergei Lavrov remain as foreign minister.

Valery Gerasimov, the chief of Russia’s general staff, will remain in his position as well.

World

Georgian opposition politician beaten by hooded thugs blames ‘Putin’s puppets’

Published

15 hours ago

May 12, 2024

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Georgian opposition politician beaten by hooded thugs blames 'Putin's puppets'

A Georgian opposition politician who was beaten by a group of hooded thugs has said he was targeted by “Putin’s puppets”.

United National Movement member Dimitri Chikovani was taken to hospital after suffering a concussion, a broken nose, cuts to the face and two black eyes in the attack outside his home.

In an interview with Sky News, Mr Chikovani said the attack was not a surprise and blamed Georgian authorities as they attempt to temper enormous protests in the capital Tbilisi.

“This is their last hope to physically attack people to gain to remain in power,” he said.

“They are Putin’s puppets, the people who make decisions under KGB guidelines, they are Russians. That’s it.”

CCTV of the attack shows Mr Chikovani walking through the car park to his apartment building before five “athletic” men ran and pushed him to the floor.

They repeatedly punched and kicked him in the head and ribs.

Mr Chikovani was not the only government opponent beaten on Wednesday.

Two other activists, one an expert in international relations and another an organiser of Saturday night’s March for Freedom, were also treated in hospital after being attacked.

Mr Chikovani remains undeterred and plans to attend protests next week against the so-called “Foreign Agents Bill”, which has sparked an outcry across Georgia.

Describing the mood among many Georgians, he said: “It’s a battle for the soul of Georgia. It’s a matter of national identity. Either you are part of Western civilisation, or you are a part of the Russian empire.”

The UK and US have called for the country’s government, led by the Georgian Dream party, to take immediate steps to prevent the intimidation of protesters.

The party’s chairman Bidzina Ivanishvili is an oligarch worth billions, and is suspected by many Georgians of continuing to have close ties to Russia.

Mr Ivanishvili has claimed the bill on “foreign agents” was necessary to assert Georgian sovereignty against Western powers which he said wanted to pull the nation into a confrontation with Russia.