As it happened: Brisbane on Friday, March 22

That’s where we’ll leave today’s updates. Thanks for joining us – we’ll return to update you on the news as it happens on Monday. Here were the stories that mattered today.

The car was set on fire in Wavell Heights after the alleged hit and run in Chermside.Credit: Nine News

The tradesman accused of a fatal hit-and-run in Chermside yesterday had allegedly seen the victim in the mirror but driven off, then changed his clothes, set the vehicle on fire and disposed of his phone.

Proposed changes to rental laws in Queensland have sparked debate among industry figures: the CEO of Tenants Queensland says limits are needed on how much rents could rise, but REIQ’s chief says “it’s actually tenants who have been electing to offer more rent or pay rent in advance to secure a property”.

And the Brisbane 2032 Games venues continue to cause dissent, with Andrew Liveris, the president of the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee Board, admitting the week’s events are “not a good look for any of us”. The Queensland government has confirmed it spent $6.4 million on the development of a project validation report for the Gabba. But it seems the PM is just about the only politician not fazed: he says that whatever happens, the Games “will be a cracker”.

Debbie Harry of Blondie was part of the Pandemonium line-up. She performed at Coachella, California, in 2023.Credit: Getty

Fans of rockers Alice Cooper and Blondie have been left confused, with reports a rock festival bound for Queensland and featuring the classic performers has been cancelled.

Reece Walsh and his nasty gash after Thursday’s game.

After the Broncos were belted last night, none more so than Reece Walsh, who left the paddock in the opening minutes, coach Kevin Walters has issued an impassioned plea to the NRL to address “duty of care” laws in the game.

And Queensland Reds coach Les Kiss is faced with the ultimate selection headache – which could have huge ramifications for Australian rugby.

Testing at a Queensland port has found the presence of varroa mite in a now-destroyed Asian honey bee nest.

Biosecurity officials found the varroa mite within a single bee nest at the Port of Brisbane, after it was discovered earlier in March.

A varroa mite feeding on a honey bee (file image).Credit: Cooper Schouten/Southern Cross University

Authorities confirmed the presence of varroa mite on Friday with testing indicating no new exotic viruses or deformed wing virus.

However, the samples indicate a new “exotic incursion of Asian honey bee” that are not related to an established population found in Cairns.

The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries will continue surveillance at the Port of Brisbane and surrounding areas for Asian honey bee and varroa mite.

A movement control order aims to prevent the spread through the more than 3000 known hives in a 10-kilometre radius of the port.

This means beekeepers who have or had hives in the area in the past 90 days must not move them or their products and equipment.

Varroa mite attack and feed on honey bees. It is one of the most damaging honey bee pests in the world.

There have been about 12 incursions of bee pests in Australia during the past decade from Asian honey bees to varroa mites.

While advocates for renters have pleaded for more protection for Queensland tenants, real estate industry figures have condemned parts of proposed government changes to rental laws “extreme, unnecessary and impractical”.

Tenants Queensland CEO Penny Carr urged the government to remove the ability for a landlord to end a tenancy simply because a fixed-term lease was expiring, and said limits were needed on how much rents could rise.

But Real Estate Institute of Queensland chief executive Antonia Mercorella suggested moves to ban rent bidding were unnecessary because tenants had been offering to pay more, or pay a chunk in advance, to secure scarce homes.

Debate about how to help renters and those looking for a rental has escalated across all levels of government. With a state election in October, and Labor wary of shedding support in key Brisbane seats but cautious of the outspoken property sector, it is unlikely to ease soon.

Read more here.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has batted away turmoil over the viability of the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games, saying Sydney faced similar criticism over venues and costs in the lead-up to Sydney 2000.

Earlier this week the Queensland government rejected a recommendation to build a new sporting complex, opting to refurbish older facilities at the Gabba and Lang Park.

“Look, hosting the Olympics is always a complex issue,” Albanese said on Friday.

“I’m from Sydney and I remember that there was criticism in the lead-up to the Sydney 2000 Games. Considerable criticism [but] you know what, it was a ripper of a time.

“I have friends who left Sydney during those Games and rented their places out and who regret it because it was such a fantastic time to be in Sydney.

“The Brisbane Olympics will be a cracker. It will be great for Brisbane, it’ll be great for Queensland, it’ll be great for Australia.”

More than 100 electric vehicles have been urgently recalled in Australia due to a serious battery fault that could “lead to a vehicle fire”.

The federal Transport Department issued the urgent recall for 123 Audi e-Tron vehicles on Friday in what is the second major recall for Audi electric cars this year.

However, the government also warned that software to address the fault was still being developed and vehicle owners might have to wait months for a fix.

The latest Audi recall was issued for its e-Tron 55 and 55 Sportback SUVs manufactured between 2018 and 2022, with concerns its battery could catch fire.

“Due to a manufacturing defect, the high-voltage battery may experience a thermal overload if charged over 80 per cent capacity,” the recall said.

“If this occurs, the battery could overheat and lead to a vehicle fire.”

Vehicle owners are advised to schedule an appointment with Audi to have their vehicle’s battery inspected, and to “temporarily limit the charging target to 80 per cent capacity”.

When a crocodile walked into a Townsville service station it was no laughing matter for locals.

The crocodile being released after its visit to the service station.

The snappy customer was spotted wandering into the north Queensland business after 7pm Tuesday night.

Senior wildlife officer Tony Frisby soon arrived to snap up the roaming reptile. He said the 1.4-metre freshwater crocodile’s motives were a mystery.

“We do not know why the freshwater crocodile entered the service station,” he said. “But with recent heavy rainfall, crocodiles of all sizes and species are on the move.”

Frisby said freshwater crocs were usually timid and not considered dangerous.

“But they will act defensively if they feel cornered or threatened and people should observe them from a distance.”

The crocodile was taken to the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation’s facility in Townsville where it was placed into a secure pond, before being released into a suitable habitat at the nearby Ross River.

A motorist accused of fatally striking an elderly man in Brisbane’s north was speeding, failed to brake and saw the victim lying on the road in his mirror before driving off, police will allege.

Moments after the incident in Brisbane’s north, tradesman Joshua Alexander Scott, 35, then allegedly drove to a friend’s house, where he changed his clothes and concocted a story to cover up his crime, before setting the vehicle on fire and disposing of his phone.

The car was set on fire in Wavell Heights after the alleged hit and run in Chermside.Credit: Nine News

Police were called to the intersection of Kittyhawk Drive and Murphy Road in Chermside about 5.15am on Thursday after reports Ian Victor Colwell, 72, had been hit by a vehicle while walking.

Scott, from Joyner, was charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death and leaving the scene without helping Colwell, who suffered critical injuries and died on the way to hospital.

Read more.

On to day five now of the fallout of Monday’s 2032 Games venue review, and key players in the organising of the event are set to meet for the first time this year. Ahead of that meeting, the man leading that group has given some sharp words.

Andrew Liveris, the president of the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee Board, which also features Premier Steven Miles and Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, has described the week’s events as “not a good look for any of us”.

“We need to improve that look, I’m working on that,” he told journalists on his way to the meeting. “Obviously the timing is pretty interesting.”

Liveris said “this sort of activity is expected in the Olympics” suggesting people needed to “expect the unexpected”, and welcomed both Miles’ and Opposition Leader David Crisafulli’s commitment to the Games.

He insisted that with eight years to go, “we have time”, and said the government’s now-preferred option of athletics held at QSAC “can work”.

What about the review’s headline Victoria Park stadium call?

We don’t need, necessarily, a centrepiece new stadium. Should the city of Brisbane and state of Queensland and federal government decide on a new stadium? That’s for legacy reasons. Should they do that, and the taxpayer wants that, we will put on a brilliant Games, but we could put up brilliant games necessarily without that and that’s what the IOC [International Olympic Committee] said.

Olympic silver medallist Nathan Baggaley has won his appeal against a conviction for attempting to import $200 million worth of cocaine into Australia.

Baggaley, 48, was found guilty by a Supreme Court jury in April 2021 of attempting to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug in July 2018 and imprisoned for 25 years.

Baggaley’s conviction will be set aside and a retrial ordered.Credit: AAP

Baggaley was intercepted by the navy in July 2018 after allegedly using a seven-metre inflatable boat to pick up 650 kilograms of cocaine from a ship 360 kilometres off Australia’s east coast.

Justice David Boddice handed down orders in the Court of Appeal in Brisbane on Friday that Baggaley’s appeal had been allowed.

Read more.

As the conversation around the cost of the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games continues, the Queensland government has put a price on planning, confirming it spent $6.4 million on the development of a project validation report for the Gabba.

The report analysed redevelopment options for the Gabba, as well as scope, costs and risks associated with a knock-down and rebuild.

Following the release of the 60-day review in Olympic venues on Monday, Premier Steven Miles announced the Gabba would not be rebuilt.

He also swerved from former Brisbane lord mayor Graham Quirk’s advice to build a new stadium at Victoria Park, instead opting to bring the former QEII Stadium, now QSAC, up to scratch.

With millions spent on proposals and reviews before works have even begun, Miles has assured Queenslanders it had not been all in vain, saying the Gabba report findings would be used to guide future works needed for the stadium.