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  • Disgraced celebrity manager Ralph Carr’s life behind bars after rape verdict

    Disgraced celebrity manager Ralph Carr’s life behind bars after rape verdict

    A pre-sentence hearing at Victoria’s County Court this week has shed new light on the harsh prison conditions and plummeting mental health of disgraced former celebrity talent agent Ralph Carnovale-Carr, who was found guilty of rape and sexual assault last month. The 66-year-old high-profile industry figure, who built a 35-year talent management business representing some of Australia’s biggest sports and entertainment names, was convicted by a Melbourne jury on July 28 following a two-week trial.

    Jurors heard that Carnovale-Carr assaulted a woman decades younger than him after a night of drinking and cocaine use in March 2023. After the verdict, he was taken into custody immediately, and new details from his three weeks behind bars were presented to the court on Monday.

    According to defense barrister Dermot Dann KC, who is representing Carnovale-Carr, the former agent has been confined to his cell for up to 23 hours every day, a situation he described as “terrible” for a defendant who continues to maintain his innocence. Citing a forensic psychiatric assessment completed by Dr. Jacqueline Rakov, Dann told the court that Carnovale-Carr experiences three to four panic attacks daily, struggles with chronic insomnia and recurring nightmares, and engaged in self-harm shortly after entering custody, overwhelmed by what Dann called the “dizzying” shock of the guilty verdict and incarceration.

    Dr. Rakov’s assessment confirms that Carnovale-Carr, who was previously diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, and an anxiety disorder, has seen a severe escalation of his mental health conditions since the criminal proceedings began. She warned that incarceration poses a “clinically significant and dynamic” risk to the former agent, noting that custody is likely to trigger further deterioration of his mental state. Carnovale-Carr has been under Dr. Rakov’s care since November 2023, and has already been admitted to inpatient psychiatric care multiple times as his symptoms worsened during key stages of the court process. His condition is now far more serious than it was at the start of proceedings, Dann argued.

    In an August 12 meeting with Dr. Rakov, Carnovale-Carr shared that he believes his decades-long career and personal reputation have been completely destroyed by the conviction. He also told the psychiatrist he feels like he is “dying” amid ongoing complications with high blood pressure and his daily medication regimen.

    Dann told the court that his client pinned all his hopes on securing a stay of sentencing while he pursues an appeal against his conviction, noting that Carnovale-Carr’s assessment that his career is over is not undue pessimism, but a realistic reflection of his current position. “If that goal, that hope is removed, we would say the situation is particularly concerning, particularly dark,” Dann told the court.

    In addition to outlining his client’s current struggles, the defense emphasized Carnovale-Carr’s personal background: the son of working-class immigrant parents, he built his successful talent management company from humble beginnings, ran the business successfully for 35 years, and helped launch the careers of dozens of young aspiring performers and athletes. Thirteen people, including several of Carnovale-Carr’s family members, have submitted character references to the court on his behalf. High-profile client Dustin Martin, a retired star Australian Rules footballer with the Richmond Tigers, cut professional ties with Carnovale-Carr immediately after the guilty verdict.

    For three years during the progression of the case, Carnovale-Carr’s identity was kept hidden from media reports via a series of suppression orders granted on mental health grounds. The final suppression order was lifted by Judge Frank Gucciardo just days after the jury returned its guilty verdict. The pre-sentence hearing is ongoing.

  • ‘No-brainer’: Cameron Munster backs ‘brainiac Bill’ to nail next role as Cameron Smith emerges as favourite to coach Queensland

    ‘No-brainer’: Cameron Munster backs ‘brainiac Bill’ to nail next role as Cameron Smith emerges as favourite to coach Queensland

    Nearly a decade after lifting a premiership trophy together as teammates, a potential reunion of Cameron Munster and Billy Slater at the Melbourne Storm is now the subject of rampant rugby league speculation, following Slater’s sudden resignation as head coach of the Queensland Maroons State of Origin side.

    Queensland Rugby League made the announcement last Friday that the Maroons legend would step down from the role after five consecutive Origin series in charge, triggering widespread discussion across Australian rugby league about what the 2024 premiership-winner will do next. Among the most eye-catching rumors to emerge is a possible return to Melbourne to replace the club’s iconic long-term head coach Craig Bellamy when he retires in 2028. Melbourne Storm CEO Justin Rodski addressed the speculation publicly over the weekend, though no official confirmation has been provided by either party.

    While Slater has previously stated he has no interest in taking a full-time NRL head coaching role, current Queensland captain and Melbourne Storm five-eighth Cameron Munster says the idea of Slater leading his old club makes perfect sense. Speaking on the speculation, Munster highlighted Slater’s unparalleled rugby league acumen, honed through a decorated career as a player and more recently as a commentator for Nine Network. “There’s probably no better brainiac than Bill when it comes to footy,” Munster said. “He’s footy mad and dissects the game so well. You could see that in the way he had some great years for Queensland as a player and coach, and it shines through in his commentary work too. Whatever he decides to do, I’m sure a lot of people will be lining up for his services, and why wouldn’t you?”

    Munster also expressed understanding for why Slater chose to step down from the Maroons job, noting the former fullback’s overlapping commitments with commentary and multiple side businesses left him unable to dedicate his full attention to the Origin role. “He had too much on his plate, and he doesn’t want to do a disservice to Queensland. He’s got his fingers in other pies and businesses, so he felt like he wasn’t going to be fully in with Queensland,” Munster explained. “Knowing Billy, if he’s not fully in with something then he won’t take it up.”

    Despite that understanding, the Queensland skipper made clear the entire squad is disappointed to see Slater depart. “It’s very disappointing. We all have a lot of love and admiration for him, and he’s done a lot for me and my game as both a player and coach. It’s very disappointing for Queensland, but someone else gets the chance to coach Queensland,” he said.

    Attention has already turned to potential candidates to fill the vacant Maroons head coaching role, with Storm Immortal-in-waiting Cameron Smith emerging as the early bookmakers’ favorite, alongside North Queensland Cowboys legend Johnathan Thurston. For Munster, opening talks with Smith about the job is an obvious next step for QRL. “When you look at guys like him and JT and Bill, they’re guys that have been in that arena for a long time and had a lot of success,” Munster said. “It would be a no-brainer having a chat with Smithy. I’m not sure if he wants to do it, but I’m sure they won’t have any bad suitors or anyone who can’t do the job. It’s an exciting time for Queensland. Whoever takes it up will do a great job.”

    The coaching speculation extends beyond Queensland, as it could also shape Munster’s own long-term future at Melbourne. The 31-year-old will become eligible to negotiate with rival clubs from November 1, and his contract beyond 2027 remains unresolved. Munster has previously stated he will stay at the Storm as long as Bellamy remains head coach, and any move by Slater to take over from Bellamy in 2028 could influence his decision to re-sign. He has also been linked with a potential career-ending move to a Papua New Guinean side in recent months.

    Melbourne has repeatedly stated it wants to retain Munster, who has spent his entire career at the club after making his debut in 2014, though young prospect Hayden Watson has turned heads with strong recent performances, giving the Storm depth at five-eighth if Munster does depart.

    Speaking on his own future, Munster said coaching will play a role in his decision, but family priorities will ultimately be the deciding factor. “The coach does play a part, but the coach also wants to have me here as well,” he said. “We’ve got some good young kids coming through our pathways, but also I love the club and have so much respect for them. They were the club that gave me my first chance, and I’m all about giving back to that. I probably could have gone to other clubs for more money, but I’ve also got to make sure I do the right thing for my family. I’ve got three young kids, they need to go to school and get a better education than me, so I’ve got to put them first. If that’s the right opportunity to stay here, then I’d love to stay here. But I’ve got to talk to the board and recruitment team here and see if it’s the best thing for my wife and kids.”

  • Perth’s iconic C Restaurant to close after 20 years, as historic St Martin’s Tower gets hotel revamp

    Perth’s iconic C Restaurant to close after 20 years, as historic St Martin’s Tower gets hotel revamp

    After more than two decades of serving iconic skyline views and award-winning dining to Western Australia’s capital, one of Australia’s most famous revolving restaurants has announced it will permanently close its doors in early 2027, a surprise announcement that has left the venue’s close-knit team and local community grappling with sadness.

    Perched 33 stories above Perth’s central business district inside St Martin’s Tower, C Restaurant first opened its doors to diners in 2001, taking over the historic revolving space that previously housed Hilite 33, the tower’s original restaurant tenant dating back to 1978. Over its 20-plus years of operation, C Restaurant grew to become a landmark of Perth’s hospitality scene, earning a reputation as one of Australia’s earliest and most beloved revolving dining venues. It has collected a long list of industry honors, including multiple Gold Plate Awards and a permanent spot on the Western Australia Good Food Guide Icons List, all while offering guests a slowly rotating panoramic view of the entire Perth skyline.

    The closure is tied to a planned redevelopment of St Martin’s Tower, which will see the entire building converted into a new hotel, forcing the long-standing restaurant to vacate its space by January 31, 2027. In an emotional statement released this week, owner Olivier Letrone described his decades leading the restaurant as one of the greatest privileges of his life. He shared that breaking the news of the upcoming closure to his 90-person team was one of the hardest conversations of his entire hospitality career.

    To his surprise and gratitude, every single member of the team has committed to staying with the restaurant through its final day of service, a display of loyalty Letrone called humbling, and the core reason the venue has thrived for more than 20 years. “We intend to finish the way we’ve always operated: as a family, and at the top of our game,” Letrone said.

    General Manager Ann-Marie Gill echoed that sentiment, noting that her years at C Restaurant have been some of the most rewarding of her professional life. “Working alongside such a dedicated team and helping create memorable experiences for our guests has been a real privilege,” she said. “Although it’s difficult to say goodbye, I’ll always be proud to have been part of C Restaurant’s story.”

    Even as the venue prepares for its final rotation in 2027, Letrone is already laying early plans to revive the brand at a new location, noting that the team’s shared passion for hospitality will not disappear when the St Martin’s Tower doors close. While he has not confirmed whether the new venue will retain the fine dining focus that defined the original C Restaurant, he confirmed that work to identify a new space is already underway.

    For the next two years, however, the team will remain focused on what they have always done best: delivering exceptional food, warm hospitality, and unforgettable experiences for every guest who walks through the door. Letrone extended an open invitation to Perth locals and past visitors to return for one final meal before closing day, to celebrate the decades of memories created 33 stories above the city. “While its doors will close on 31 January 2027, the memories made here will endure long after the restaurant completes its final turn,” he said.

  • Nearly 13,000 displaced after deadly Indonesian quake

    Nearly 13,000 displaced after deadly Indonesian quake

    Two days after a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Indonesia’s Flores Island, more than 12,800 people remain displaced from their damaged or destroyed homes, waiting for critical emergency aid as hundreds of aftershocks continue to shake the region.

    The shallow quake, centered just off Flores’ north coast, hit early Saturday, leaving 53 people dead and more than 100 injured. As of Monday morning, Indonesia’s national disaster agency (BNPB) confirmed no additional missing persons, but the scale of displacement has risen steadily, with thousands of survivors now sheltering in public facilities including schools, police stations and government compounds, or in makeshift camps assembled from scrap materials.

    Reporters from Agence France-Presse visiting Mbay, the small town closest to the epicenter in Nagekeo Regency, observed survivors living in hand-built tents constructed from tarpaulin and scavenged poles. Thirty-two-year-old Mbay resident Junaidin, who shares his tent with roughly 29 other people, explained why survivors refuse to return to their properties: many structures have either fully collapsed or developed severe structural cracks that make them uninhabitable. “We only go back home to get water, clothes, pillows, and then we spend the nights here,” he told AFP.

    For many island residents, the fresh disaster triggers traumatic memories of an identical 7.7-magnitude quake that hit Flores in 1992, which spawned a deadly tsunami that killed an estimated 2,500 people. That collective trauma has left survivors too afraid to sleep indoors even after the initial shaking stopped, with many spending consecutive nights outside.

    Junaidin echoed a widespread frustration among survivors, noting that no government aid had arrived in his community as of Monday, while national Independence Day celebrations were held with large-scale ceremonies thousands of kilometers away in Jakarta. “As for help from the government, there hasn’t been any — no tents, no medicine, no food, no drinking water, nothing,” he said. “Please open your eyes, government. We are your people, we are part of you. So please look after us.”

    Thirty-one-year-old Siti Saudah Daso, a Mbay mother of three, described the panic of evacuation that left her family with nothing but the clothing they wore. “We fled with nothing. Just the clothes on our backs. We’re victims; we’re going through a disaster,” she said. While promises of aid have been made, she added, “there’s no proof. So honestly, we’re a bit upset, disappointed.”

    In response to the disaster, the Indonesian Air Force has mobilized three aircraft — two Hercules transport planes and one Boeing jet — to airlift 13 tons of emergency supplies including food, clean drinking water, clothing and medical equipment. Helicopters will also be deployed to deliver provisions directly to cut-off, isolated communities that are hard to reach by land, according to the commander of El Tari Air Base in Kupang, speaking to Indonesia’s state-run Antara News Agency. Military personnel have also been deployed to coordinate aid distribution in the hardest-hit areas, but survivors say the critical supplies have not yet reached them.

    Search and rescue operations are still ongoing across the affected zone, with teams conducting both ground and air sweeps to confirm no victims are trapped or unaccounted for. “There haven’t been any reports on missing persons, but we are still scouring the area just to be sure,” search and rescue official Fathur Rahman told AFP Monday morning.

    BNPB spokesman Berton Suar Pelita Panjaitan confirmed that at least 914 houses across Flores have suffered severe damage, with hundreds more sustaining minor structural harm. Dozens of public buildings — including schools, health clinics and government offices — have also been damaged in the quake. Non-governmental organization Save the Children warned Monday that more than 8,000 children in the affected region now face heightened safety risks and widespread disruption to their education.

    Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geologically active zone that sees frequent seismic and volcanic activity. The country has suffered some of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history, including the 2004 9.1-magnitude quake off the coast of Sumatra that triggered a massive Indian Ocean tsunami, killing more than 220,000 people across the region, 170,000 of whom were in Indonesia.

  • ‘Doubt it’: Latrell Mitchell return delayed by another week as teammate shrugs off own calf issue

    ‘Doubt it’: Latrell Mitchell return delayed by another week as teammate shrugs off own calf issue

    As the NRL finals series draws near, South Sydney star Latrell Mitchell has taken a visible step forward in his injury recovery, making an appearance at Monday’s wet weather training session to complete light jogging drills – a development that has injected cautious optimism into the Rabbitohs camp around his potential return this season. However, his teammates have confirmed that a comeback for this weekend’s high-stakes clash against the New Zealand Warriors remains highly unlikely. Mitchell has been sidelined since South Sydney’s Round 11 defeat to the Dolphins on May 15, when a back injury triggered a lingering nerve issue that ultimately spread to cause a persistent calf complaint that has kept him off the pitch for months. Rabbitohs winger Campbell Graham, who is also managing his own calf injury, shared the latest update on Mitchell’s recovery after joining the star playmaker for his light training session Monday. “I can’t see him suiting up this week, and I don’t have a clear timeline for when he’ll be back, but whenever he’s available, we’ll welcome him with open arms,” Graham told reporters. “We only did a short session of jogging and stride outs, and I don’t have a full read on his physical readiness for match play just yet, but there’s definitely still hope he’ll pull through and get back on the pitch this year. It’s really good to see the big fella out there putting in the work – it’s clear he’s one step closer to a possible return. “Any time he can pull on the jersey for us is a win, and I’ve been really impressed with how he’s handled this whole tough period. I know firsthand how demoralizing it can be when you’re stuck on the sidelines, not knowing when or if you’ll be able to play again. It can feel like there’s no end in sight, but Mitchell has handled it like a true professional. He’s stayed in great shape even when he couldn’t do much on-field training, and he’s made all the right choices off the pitch to make sure he’ll be ready the second he gets the green light to return. His hunger to get back out there with the group is a really great example for all of us, too.” Graham is no stranger to the frustration of injury layoffs himself, after a calf injury forced him to miss South Sydney’s Round 23 win against Parramatta Eels. Initially, there were concerns the winger would be sidelined for multiple weeks, but he pushed through to return in last weekend’s critical clash against the Canterbury Bulldogs, a win that has all but locked in South Sydney’s spot in the 2024 NRL finals. “Coming back so soon did carry some risk, but this was such a big game for us, and I knew I had to be out there to help us get the result we needed,” Graham explained. “I’m just glad we walked away with the two points, and even happier that I got through the match without any new issues. “This is going to be an ongoing thing I manage through training load management for the rest of the season, but getting that first match back under my belt was a huge step in the right direction. I have full faith in our club’s medical staff to help me manage this moving forward, so I can stay on the pitch for the games that matter most.”

  • Japan’s economy manages 1.1% growth rate despite headwinds

    Japan’s economy manages 1.1% growth rate despite headwinds

    New government data released Monday shows Japan’s economy recorded slower-than-expected growth in the April-June 2026 quarter, as persistent domestic consumer weakness and geopolitical energy market disruptions offset export gains driven by global automotive and AI-linked semiconductor demand.

    Cabinet Office figures indicate that real gross domestic product (GDP), the total adjusted value of all goods and services produced across the nation, expanded 0.3% in the second quarter compared to the first three months of the year. When annualized — a metric that projects what growth would look like if the second quarter’s pace held for 12 full months — the expansion hit 1.1%, a marked pullback from the 2.1% annualized growth recorded in the January-March period.

    Domestic demand remained a major drag on overall growth: private consumption, which accounts for a large share of Japan’s economic activity, fell 1.2% quarter-over-quarter. This pullback comes amid persistent cost-of-living pressures that have hit household budgets particularly hard. A sharply weakened yen has raised the cost of imported raw materials and energy, pushing up domestic prices while wage growth has stayed far too stagnant to offset these increases for most consumers.

    On the export side, growth slowed to just 0.5% in the quarter, but the sector still delivered critical support to overall GDP. That modest expansion was fueled by sustained global demand for two of Japan’s most prominent exports: passenger vehicles from industry leaders including Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., and semiconductors, where global appetite has surged amid the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence development that requires high-powered chip capacity. The weaker yen has also worked in favor of large Japanese exporters, as it inflates the value of their overseas earnings once converted back to yen. Government consumption bucked the domestic trend, rising 1.6% quarter-over-quarter.

    The biggest headwind facing Japan’s economy this year stems from the ongoing war in Iran, which has disrupted critical oil shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz. As a resource-poor nation that imports nearly all of its crude oil, Japan is disproportionately vulnerable to spikes in global energy prices. The partial blockage of the key Persian Gulf shipping route, which carries the majority of Middle Eastern oil exports to Asian markets, has pushed up crude prices substantially: Brent crude currently trades around $88 per barrel, up from roughly $65 per barrel a year ago, though prices have pulled back from earlier this year when they surged above $110 per barrel. In response to the market crunch, Japanese authorities have released strategic oil reserves and are working to secure alternative supply routes.

    Monday’s growth figures fell short of analyst forecasts, deepening concerns over the trajectory of Japan’s economy this year. On currency markets, the U.S. dollar traded near the 160 yen mark shortly after the data release, hovering just off 159 yen — a level well above the 145 yen exchange rate recorded one year earlier. While the weak yen benefits exporters, it erodes household purchasing power by raising import costs, creating a persistent policy dilemma for Japanese officials.

    Political pressure is also mounting for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who has made restarting sustained economic growth a central policy pledge. While Takaichi’s approval ratings remain higher than those of many recent predecessors, they have trended steadily downward in recent months as public frustration over rising prices grows.

    Despite the weaker-than-expected second quarter reading, the Bank of Japan recently adjusted its full fiscal year growth outlook upward, raising its projection to 0.6% for the 12-month period ending March 2027, up from an earlier forecast of 0.5%.

  • Singapore police investigate assault on elderly man who patted girl’s head

    Singapore police investigate assault on elderly man who patted girl’s head

    A public assault incident at a Singaporean food court has ignited fierce online debate across the city-state, after security camera footage of the confrontation spread widely across local social media over the weekend.

    The incident, which took place on a Saturday at a shopping mall food court, began when a 73-year-old elderly man patted a young girl on the head as he walked past the table where the child was seated with her parents. What started as an apparently innocent, casual gesture quickly escalated into violence: the girl’s father, visibly enraged by the unsolicited contact, launched a physical attack that ended with the elderly man thrown forcefully onto the hard food court floor.

    Surveillance footage from the food court, originally published to the social media pages of local stall Bei-Ing Wanton Noodle by the elderly man’s son, quickly went viral after being shared. In the original post, the victim’s son wrote to request public help identifying the attacker, noting that his 73-year-old father already has pre-existing chronic injuries to his legs and hip. Even though the 40-year-old attacker reportedly approached the elderly man after the incident, offered an apology and bought him a drink to make amends, the victim has since developed severe new back pain from the fall. The post emphasized that a simple apology and a complimentary drink cannot erase the physical harm and discomfort the elderly man now endures. In a subsequent update, the victim’s son expressed gratitude to Singaporean police for their rapid response to the case, adding that the family sincerely hopes official investigation will deliver a just outcome.

    Public reaction to the viral clip has been overwhelmingly critical of the attacker’s actions. While a small contingent of online commentators has noted that the elderly man should have asked the girl’s parents for permission before touching the child, the vast majority of observers agree that the physical assault was a drastic overreaction to a gentle head pat.

    By Sunday night, Singaporean police announced they had successfully identified the 40-year-old man connected to the assault. In an official statement, law enforcement urged the public to avoid spreading unconfirmed speculation about the incident or its surrounding context, asking residents to allow investigators to complete their work and establish an official, accurate account of what occurred.

  • Piastri and Norris harmony ‘wasn’t a given’ after title scrap, says boss

    Piastri and Norris harmony ‘wasn’t a given’ after title scrap, says boss

    The 2025 Formula 1 season delivered one of the most tense intra-team title fights in recent memory, as McLaren teammates Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris locked horns repeatedly in their pursuit of the drivers’ world championship. Now, as the 2026 season gets underway under groundbreaking new technical regulations, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has opened up about the surprising shift in the pair’s dynamic, admitting that the strong working harmony they have built this year was far from guaranteed after last year’s on-track clashes.

    Piastri, the young Australian driver, held a commanding 34-point lead in the 2025 championship standings for much of the campaign, leading the field across 15 of the season’s 24 races heading into the final round at Abu Dhabi. But a late-season charge from both Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen eroded his lead, leaving Piastri to finish the season third overall, while Norris claimed his maiden world championship title.

    The close title fight spilled over into multiple on-track incidents between the two McLaren drivers. Over the course of 2025, the pair collided at four separate Grand Prix venues: Montreal, Monza, Singapore, and Austin, forcing the McLaren team to repeatedly intervene with official team orders and internal guidelines dubbed “papaya rules” to manage their rivalry. Following such a season-long, high-stakes battle that went all the way to the final race, many expected lingering friction to damage the pair’s working relationship heading into 2026.

    Speaking at a recent public Q&A event hosted by the team, Stella shared that the opposite has occurred. Far from creating a rift, the 2025 title fight has actually strengthened the bond between Piastri and Norris, both with each other and with the broader McLaren organization.

    “An aspect I’m really enjoying about our drivers is the way they’re working together,” Stella told attendees. He noted that while Norris’ positive mindset after claiming his first title was perhaps predictable, Piastri’s response to finishing third after leading for most of the year was far more encouraging than the team could have anticipated. “Instead, (Piastri) has relied even more heavily on the team to accelerate his development, both on and off the track. It wasn’t a given that, after last year, when they found themselves battling for the world title right up to the final race, the harmony they’d built would remain intact.”

    Stella also praised both drivers for their rapid adaptability during the turbulent opening rounds of the 2026 season, which is being run under a sweeping set of new technical regulations that have reshaped car design and performance. For every driver on the grid, the shift to the new generation of single-seaters has required major adjustments, not just to driving style but also to how athletes approach understanding and unlocking the full potential of the all-new power units at the heart of the 2026 cars.

    “I am very pleased with how our driver line-up is performing in this early part of the 2026 season,” Stella added. As McLaren looks to defend its position as a title contender in the new regulatory era, the unexpected resilience of the relationship between its two star drivers has emerged as an unexpected early strength for the papaya-clad outfit.

  • Winning back walls from gangs, artists fill El Salvador’s towns with color

    Winning back walls from gangs, artists fill El Salvador’s towns with color

    Nestled amid mist-shrouded coffee-growing mountains in western El Salvador, the cobblestone lanes and terracotta-roofed homes of Concepcion de Ataco bear little resemblance to the tense, violence-plagued streets that once defined swathes of the small Central American nation. Today, the concrete walls that gangs once used to mark their violent territorial boundaries are covered in vibrant, sweeping murals: sleek jaguars poised in jungle undergrowth, delicate native wildflowers, pre-Columbian inspired portraits, and colorful tropical birds, all brought to life by dozens of spray paint cans in the hands of local and regional artists.

    This transformation is the work of Pigmen Trip, a traveling mural festival now in its eighth year, founded and organized by 31-year-old Salvadoran artist Isaac Sosa. For nearly a decade, Sosa and his fellow muralists navigated the constant threat of gang harassment and violence to bring art to marginalized neighborhoods. Working in gang-controlled zones was once a frightening high-stakes endeavor, but a dramatic nationwide shift in security has opened new possibilities for the movement.

    Since President Nayib Bukele launched a sweeping national anti-gang offensive in 2022, gang influence across El Salvador has collapsed dramatically. The crackdown has drawn sharp international criticism, however, with human rights NGOs documenting widespread allegations of arbitrary detentions, extrajudicial violence, and other abuses that may amount to crimes against humanity. Despite these controversies, for many Salvadorans living in former gang strongholds, the decline in gang activity has brought palpable new freedoms.

    “With this change, this rebirth we are experiencing as a country…it’s a different atmosphere, more peaceful, more enjoyable, and with greater freedom of expression,” Sosa said. Standing before a fresh canvas of concrete in Ataco, he added: “Years later, we won back the walls from the gangs.” For Sosa, mural painting is far more than public art—it is a magical tool capable of driving deep social transformation, turning symbols of intimidation into canvases that celebrate local identity and community.

    Since the festival’s launch, participating artists have created more than 200 murals across the country, bringing together creators from across Latin America, including Colombia, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, and Argentina. For veteran participants like 36-year-old Darwin Flores, the shift in security has transformed every step of the creative process. Before gangs were weakened, painting in so-called “hot zones” required extreme preparation: artists had to verify every detail of their location and their team to avoid running afoul of territorial rules. Now, Flores says he can walk into any neighborhood, even former gang strongholds like La Campanera, without fear.

    The new atmosphere has also opened opportunities for emerging creators like 29-year-old Cristian Juarez, who paints with a prosthetic after losing his right leg in an accident 11 years ago. Juarez echoes Flores’s experience: “It wasn’t so easy to paint back then, but now everything is very different.” Standing before his own mural—a striking portrait of a young woman in a feathered headdress—Juarez paused to mourn the many local artists who fell victim to gang violence and disappeared in recent decades.

    For long-time residents of the towns hosting the festival, the colorful new murals represent far more than aesthetic change. Cristian Lara, a 50-year-old local merchant, whose home now features a custom mural painted by festival artists, called the work a blessing for his community. “There are new winds of change in El Salvador,” he said, a sentiment shared by the artists who have turned symbols of fear into beacons of hope for a nation rebuilding.

  • SA man secures ‘life-changing’ Keno win, mystery $20m Hervey Bay winner found

    SA man secures ‘life-changing’ Keno win, mystery $20m Hervey Bay winner found

    Across Australia, three lucky lottery players have recently walked away with multi-million dollar windfalls, transforming their financial outlooks in an instant. The first of these new millionaires, a resident of Royal Park in Adelaide’s inner western district, secured a $1,244,714.30 Keno Spot 10 jackpot, and opened up about the surreal chain of events that led to his win.

    The winner shared that he had no inkling of his good fortune until he remembered to check his ticket after leaving the venue. When he pulled up his ticket details online and saw all his numbers matched, he immediately rushed back to the club to confirm the result, which turned out to be legitimate. The winning entry used a set of randomly generated numbers, a choice that ended up netting him one of the biggest Keno prizes in the region this year.

    Calling the unexpected windfall completely life-changing, the winner revealed he and his family have already consulted a professional financial advisor to map out long-term plans for the money. “Once it all settles and it feels real, we’ll be able to have more of an idea of what we’ll do,” he explained in an interview after the win.

    The winning ticket was purchased at Seven 22, a local community club in Beverley. Club manager Kelli Pearce said the entire venue erupted in excitement when the win was confirmed, with even all the kitchen chefs stepping out to congratulate the new millionaire. Notably, the staff member who processed the ticket initially misread the prize amount as $12,000, only to realize the actual total was more than 100 times that initial estimate.

    Meanwhile, hundreds of kilometers north in Queensland, a Hervey Bay woman took home half of a $40 million Oz Lotto jackpot, splitting the top prize with a Hobart man for a $20 million individual payout. The woman checked her ticket while heading to work on a recent Thursday morning, and was stunned when she realized the prize value was far higher than she first thought.

    She explained that she stopped at a local store to check her ticket after seeing that an unregistered ticket had won the shared jackpot, and initially thought staff told her she had won $20,000, before noticing a handful of extra zeroes on the screen. The winner called her windfall a massive boost for her entire family, and despite now being a multi-millionaire, she says she has no plans to step away from her job. “I just can’t believe it. I’m not sure I can walk at the moment. My whole body is shaking,” she told reporters moments after confirming her win.

    A third winner from Brisbane also claimed a seven-figure prize in the recent Saturday Gold Lotto draw, taking home $1,086,418.14. This winner, who has played the same set of personal lucky numbers for years, said the win came as a complete shock, and he plans to use the money to improve the lives of his family and close friends. “I can do a lot for family and friends … it’ll make life easier for sure,” he said.

    This streak of big wins cements Brisbane’s western suburbs as one of Australia’s luckiest regions for lottery players this year: this latest prize marks the fourth major jackpot win in the area in 2024, bringing the total collective winnings for local players to more than $43 million.