Four kids rob Katherine service station, steal cash and cigarettes

NT Police are search for four kids after they robbed a Katherine service station.

Four boys are on the run after they stole cash and cigarettes from a Katherine service station.

NT Police Northern Watch Commander Jamie Cobern said the kids broke into OTR’s Caltex service station on Bicentennial Rd at 2.57am Sunday.

Sergeant Cobern said the employee “managed to get to a secure room” and was not injured during the incident.

He said the children allegedly smashed in through the service station’s glass front doors, with one of them holding a squeegee as an improvised weapon.

A cash register containing a quantity of cash and other items were allegedly taken from the service station during the break-in.

He said police estimated the youngest of the children was about 10 years old based on CCTV footage.

Sergeant Cobern said a forensics team had already attended the scene and police were working to identify the four boys.

It is the second time in a month that the safety of an OTR Caltex employee has been compromised on the job.

In October an employee at the brand’s Malak service station lost an eye after a makeshift spear was thrown as rampaging teens took control of the facility.

The offender was understood to be aged 10 and too young to prosecute.

The October incident prompted the Shop Distributors union to call on the NT Chief Minister Natasha Fyles to honour a commitment she made after the death of a bottleshop worker in March 2023 to undertake safety audits at late night retail outlets.

She said the audit “would provide advice on how business security can be improved through a range of mechanisms including crime reduction through environmental design”.

Responding to questions from the NT News, the government revealed only 35 out of potentially hundreds of late night businesses had so far been audited.

Shop Distributors Association secretary Josh Peak said the government’s audits process had been “manifestly inadequate” and signalled to essential and after-hours workers their safety was “optional”.

“Offering one-off voluntary self-assessments to a handful of business is manifestly inadequate and is not an audit,” Mr Peak said at the time.

“Physical measures such as security screens, secondary exits, panic rooms and duress alarms are the best measures employers can take to keep their workers safe.

“A properly conducted compulsory audit is what is necessary to ensure that workers in exposed locations are adequately protected. Workers will continue to be at risk until a wide-ranging, compulsory audit of high-risk workplaces is undertaken.

“Retail work is as dangerous as it has ever been. The government needs to act now to ensure the safety of our essential workers.”

OTR said “the wellbeing” of all team members was the company’s primary concern.

Charges laid after alleged Nightcliff domestic knife attack

Northern Territory police have charged a man in connection to an aggravated assault in Nightcliff yesterday.

An NT Police spokesman said officers received reports a woman, 29, had been assaulted with a knife at a residence on Nightcliff Road at about 3pm.

He said the woman received multiple puncture wounds and was conveyed to Royal Darwin Hospital where she is in a stable condition.

Her 33-year-old male partner allegedly fled the scene and was arrested a short time later in Leanyer.

He has been charged with unlawfully causing serious harm and remanded to appear in the Darwin Local Court on Friday.

Detective Senior Sergeant Ian Young said the arrest was a team effort involving a number of different police units.

“This arrest was the result of a co-ordinated effort from Casuarina general duties, dog operation unit, crime and the domestic and family violence unit.”

He advised anybody experiencing domestic violence or requiring support services to contact 1800 737 732 or Lifeline on 131 114.

Man faces charges for allegedly spitting at cop

A man who allegedly spat at a police officer during an arrest in Karama overnight is in custody pending charges.

Watch commander Jamie Cobern said the incident took place during an arrest on outstanding warrants on Thursday night.

He said the man spat at the officer’s face during the apprehension.

The man, in his mid 30s, is expected to be charged later today with multiple offences including assaulting a police officer and breaching court orders.

The officer remained on duty after the alleged assault and will have health checks following the incident.

Dog owner charged over alleged crossbow kill threat

Police have arrested a man and charged him with firearms offences following an incident in Darwin’s rural area on Tuesday.

Police were called to a Humpty Doo home about 9pm after the man, 42, allegedly threatened to shoot animals on the property and pointed a gun at its occupants before fleeing.

It followed an incident earlier in the day when it is alleged two dogs came to the Humpty Doo home and killed chickens on the property.

The occupants posted on Facebook that they would use a crossbow to kill the dogs if they reappeared.

Watch Commander Senior Sergeant Michael Budge said the dogs’ owner was made aware of the social media post and went to the property with a firearm and threatened to kill animals at the property.

Police were notified, the man was identified and taken into custody on Tuesday and is expected to appear in court Wednesday.

It will be alleged the man pointed the gun at family members and issued threats to use the firearm to kill animals on the property.

He has been charged with possessing an unregistered firearm, possessing ammunition without a permit/licence and possessing/using a firearm unlicensed.

The charges also include failing to secure a firearm, assault/threaten with a firearm and trespassing on enclosed premises.

Nov 7: Man hands himself in over alleged cyclist hit-and-run

A 45-year-old man has handed himself into police over an alleged hit and run that left a cyclist in a critical condition.

The man was arrested at a Daly River Region community on Monday and was charged with a string of driving charges including careless driving resulting in serious harm.

Police were called to the scene of the crash at the intersection of the Stuart Hwy and Woolner Rd just before 5am on Friday.

A flipped Toyota ute and a crumpled road bike were still laying at the scene as investigators documented evidence hours later.

Detective Senior Sergeant Brendan Lindner said every driver involved in a crash was legally required to “stop, render assistance to others, and then contact police”.

“If you are unwilling to stop after being involved in a crash, then don’t drive in the Northern Territory,” he said.

Major Crash detectives are continuing to urge anyone who witnessed the crash or stopped at the scene immediately after the crash to make contact on 131 444.

Police are particularly interested to speak to a female witness described as caucasian in appearance, with shoulder-length brown hair, and wearing a white Adidas shirt, dark-coloured long pants and thongs.

The 45-year-old man was granted bail and scheduled to appear at the Wadeye Local Court next year.

A 45-year-old man has been charged after a Parap hit-and-run. Picture: Sierra Haigh

Nov 6: Pedestrian killed on Stuart Hwy identified

A pedestrian killed after being hit by two cars when attempting to cross the Stuart Hwy has been identified as a 66-year-old man.

The man died about 11.30pm on Friday after being struck in quick succession on the outbound side of the highway at Johnston between Temple Tce and Lambrick Dr.

Police alleged a 22-year-old man driving the first car to strike the pedestrian did not stop and render assistance.

A short time later an 18-year-old man in a second car hit the pedestrian as he lay on the road.

The 18-year-old remained at the scene, and was arrested for the purpose of obtaining a blood sample at the hospital after returning a positive roadside reading for drugs.

The driver of the first vehicle contacted police a short time after the crash, and tested negative for alcohol.

Detective Senior Sergeant Brendan Lindner said forensic toxicology reports for both drivers and the pedestrian were pending.

“Investigations into this crash are ongoing and Major Crash detectives continue to appeal for witnesses who saw the man on the road prior to the crash occurring,” he said.

Nov 6: Boy critical after joy ride gone wrong

A boy is in a critical condition after a serious crash on the Buntine Hwy last week.

At 6.18am on Wednesday police received reports of a single vehicle crash about 18km south of the Victoria Hwy.

Four boys were injured in the crash, two taken to the Katherine District Hospital with non-life threatening injuries and two transferred via CareFlight to the Royal Darwin Hospital.

One of the boys remains in a critical condition, police confirmed on Monday morning.

The vehicle is believed to have been stolen from a remote Victoria River community.