Whistleblower backs down after fraud claim

THE whistleblower who alleged corruption at a West Australian hospital won't give evidence to a public inquiry after it was revealed she is wanted for fraud and identity theft in America, but there are other witnesses who could.

Ashton Foley, whose damning allegations to a parliamentary committee against the privately run Peel Health Campus sparked a government inquiry, has admitted she was imprisoned in the United States for about six weeks in 2008 on fraud and identity theft charges.

Records in the US show Ms Foley, under the alias Michelle Marie Foley, is still wanted there on warrant issued in Georgia in 2011 over charges of theft and identity fraud.

The ABC reports she plans to return to the US to sort the mess out.

After quitting her job on Monday as chief executive of the Orbost Regional Health centre in Victoria, Ms Foley has now said she won't give evidence to the WA inquiry headed by Professor Bryant Stokes.

"I'm damned if I do and I'm damned if I don't because, if I don't (give evidence), they'll say I've lied all along," Ms Foley told News Ltd.

"And if I do testify, they'll try to discredit my evidence anyway."

Andrew Martin, of Orbost Regional Health, confirmed to AAP that Ms Foley had offered her resignation, and it had been accepted by the board.

He also said they would look into their recruitment process, following the revelations.

Peel Health Campus' current chief executive, Neale Fong, said the hospital now wanted criminal investigations launched into Ms Foley's qualification claims, which she gave to both the WA parliament and her former employers.

"We have been shocked at what has been unearthed. It was not a deliberate attempt to try and go and find material on Ms Foley. It kept coming out, and will keep coming out," Mr Fong said.

"It is a serious offence to lie to a parliamentary committee. That is a matter for the parliament and the police to get involved in.

"We will be reporting this to the police, because she was employed at the Peel Health Campus under the misunderstanding she had these qualifications."

WA Premier Colin Barnett slammed the opposition for running hard with Ms Foley's claims, saying the party had milked her allegations for political mileage, which he labelled "reprehensible".

Opposition spokesman Ken Travers said on Monday that WA Labor was not ashamed of playing a central role in exposing the many problems at the hospital near Mandurah, south of Perth, and getting inquiries under way.

"There are so many issues that were raised that, in my view, warrants serious inquiry." he said.

"The bullying, the intimidation, the turnover of senior staff. There clearly has been a problem down at Peel Health Campus and it requires an investigation."

Mr Travers said it was a shame that there was not a full judicial inquiry.

Damning evidence about the hospital did not solely come from Ms Foley and there were in fact many witnesses, he said.

"It comes from a whole range of witnesses who have highlighted problems with that health campus that need thorough investigation."

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Two more bodies found after Mexico blast

The death toll from an explosion at an office building in Mexico has risen to 35, officials say. Source: AAP

MEXICO'S state-owned oil company says it has found two more bodies amid the rubble of a headquarters building damaged by a still-unexplained blast.

The find raises the death toll of Thursday's explosion to 35 people.

Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, operations director Carlos Murrieta had said that rescue crews were looking in the rubble for several more people reported missing, and believed their bodies were in the building's most damaged part.

The bodies of two of the four more people reported missing by their relatives were recovered on Sunday.

Officials still have not given any cause for the explosion, though they have said they suspect it was an accident.

The blast also injured 121 people.

Rescuers had initially concluded their search on Friday but resumed operations when they suspected more bodies were in the rubble.

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PNG ship tragedy probe to start soon

PNG police say they will start a formal investigation into the sinking of the Rabaul Queen. Source: AAP

PAPUA New Guinea police say once funding is released they will start a formal investigation into the sinking of the Rabaul Queen a year ago that claimed the lives of over 140 people.

The overloaded MV Rabaul Queen sank on the morning of February 2 last year with as many as 411 people on board, after being smashed by huge waves about nine nautical miles (16 km) off Finschhafen, as it made the overnight trip from Kimbe to Lae.

Police minister Nixon Duban says police will begin an investigation into PNG's worst maritime disaster once funding is released by the government on February 7.

"As of last year the Royal PNG Constabulary through its crimes directorate drew up a plan of action including a terms of reference for the investigation, and assembled an investigation team made up of senior police detectives selected from around the country," Mr Duban said in a statement.

"We are waiting for the 2013 financial year to open, which should be after February 7, and the police investigation will swing full speed into operation."

A commission of inquiry in June last year found there was no basis whatsoever to carry an excess of 295 passengers on board Rabaul Queen.

The commission, headed by Judge Warwick Andrew, was scathing of ship owner Captain Peter Sharp and made a series of recommendations for changing practices at PNG's National Maritime Safety Authority (NMSA).

"The evidence before the commission shows that the shipping operation of Captain Sharp has been compromising the safety of crew and passengers for many years," the report said.

"Captain Sharp demonstrated to the commission that he had little or no respect for people, including those in authority.

"The safety of passengers was not of paramount concern to Captain Sharp. He made it clear in evidence that he put profit ahead of safety."

The report called on the NMSA to take immediate steps to revoke the appointment of Mr Sharp as a recognised surveyor of ships.

Of the report's 25 recommendations, 14 were aimed at improving the capability of the NMSA.

AAP has been unable to contact the authority to determine if any of the recommendations - which include six-monthly safety checks on PNG passenger ships - have been implemented.

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Swan denies withholding disaster funds

Treasurer Wayne Swan denied the commonwealth is holding up Queensland disaster recovery funds. Source: AAP

FEDERAL Treasurer Wayne Swan says claims by Queensland that flood disaster recovery funds are being withheld by the commonwealth are completely wrong.

State Treasurer Tim Nicholls said on Monday the commonwealth is holding up $725 million worth of Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) payments by demanding unreasonable levels of proof that repairs have been carried out.

He said councils had been asked for pre-disaster, post-disaster and post-recovery photos of assets damaged in disasters dating back to 2006.

But Mr Swan says the disputed funds have in fact already been paid to Queensland in advance.

In a letter in response to Mr Nicholls, he has said the claim that Commonwealth funds have been withheld is "entirely incorrect".

"Advance payments were made by the commonwealth to assist Queensland with cash flow and make sure that reconstruction works were able to be done as quickly as possible," he has written.

"As you're aware advance payments of this nature are unusual, but the commonwealth government agreed to make payments early to Queensland because of the magnitude of the disaster, with the undertaking that the state government would provide proper documentary evidence following reconstruction."

Mr Swan said the commonwealth was now following up on the administrative paperwork required to finalise the claims in question and "acquit them against the funds already paid".

Comment has been sought from Mr Nicholls.

Premier Campbell Newman wants the commonwealth to change the way NDRRA funds are allocated.

Currently only like-for-like reconstruction is eligible for the cash, which is 75 per cent supplied by the federal government and 25 per cent by the state.

Mr Newman says it's time to build smarter in flood-prone areas, so the same old roads and same old bridges don't need the same repairs.

He concedes that improving rather than repairing infrastructure would cost more, but argues there would be long-term savings.

"I think the logic is absolutely compelling," he said on Monday.

Mr Newman has also asked the federal government to bring back relief payments for damaged social infrastructure, such as playgrounds and sporting facilities, after they became ineligible in December.

Flood-affected councils across Queensland say they're facing repair bills they simply can't afford, and the result will be higher local council rates unless the federal government changes its stance.

Mr Newman also asked the commonwealth for extra relief for farmers, particularly in the North Burnett citrus growing region.

Many farms may fold after suffering their second disaster in two years, he said.

"We need to make sure that towns such as Gayndah, Mundubbera and Eidsvold don't go into an economic death spiral," Mr Newman said.

Meanwhile, the Queensland flood appeal is looking dismal compared to the appeal two years ago which raised a quarter of a billion dollars.

The appeal's chairman Terry Mackenroth says only $6 million has been raised so far but at least another $9 million will be needed.

"That's just to start, before we start to look at repairing homes and replacing some homes," he said.

Mr Mackenroth is appealing to corporations to dig deep, but admits they may have donor fatigue from an overwhelming number of natural disasters in the last decade.

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Missing Qld bushwalkers found safe

FOUR bushwalkers who were missing in Queensland's southeast have been found alive and well.

A 59-year-old man and a man in his 30s were reported missing last night after failing to return from a hike at Mount Barney on Saturday.

As well, a 22-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman, both Americans, had been missing at Mount Glorious after not returning from a bushwalk.

On Sunday evening, police said that all four hikers had been found alive and well.

A police spokeswoman told AAP that a rescue helicopter had winched the men at Mount Barney to safety.

She said one of the bushwalkers at Mount Glorious had suffered a sprained ankle.

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Syrian TV airs images of Israel airstrike

SYRIAN television has broadcast images of what it said is the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike on a research facility near Damascus earlier this week, showing destroyed vehicles and moderate damage to a building.

Israel has not publicly acknowledged Wednesday's airstrike that US officials said had hit a convoy of anti-aircraft weapons inside Syria bound for the militant Lebanese Hezbollah group.

The Syrian military said the target of Israeli jets was a scientific research centre in the area of Jamraya, northwest of Damascus.

The strike raised tensions between Israel and its neighbour Syria, which is engulfed by a raging civil war.

The first purported images of the targeted site, aired by Al-Ikhbariya TV on Saturday, show the twisted and battered remnants of cars, trucks and military vehicles. A building has broken widows and damaged interiors, but no major structural damage. The caption says, "Consequences of the Israeli aggression on the Jamraya centre."

State TV also ran footage of the damage.

Syria's regime vowed revenge for the airstrike, while the rebels battling President Bashar Assad criticised him for not responding to what they termed Israeli aggression.

According to a US official, the strike targeted trucks containing SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles. The trucks were next to the research centre the Syrians identified, and the strikes hit both the trucks and the facility.

Advanced anti-aircraft missiles like the SA-17 in the hands of Hezbollah could change the strategic equation, which so far has allowed Israel to send warplanes over Lebanon practically unopposed.

The Syrian military denied that the target of the attack was a weapons convoy. It said low-flying Israeli jets crossed into the country over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights to target the Jamraya centre.

Until Wednesday, Israel has been reluctant to do anything that would seem an intervention into Syrian civil war. The airstrike adds another layer to the complexity of the Syrian conflict that has left the international community at a loss for ways to end bloodshed.

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Spike in shootings frustrates SA top cop

SOUTH Australia's top cop has vented his frustration at the spike on the number of shootings in the state in the past month and the number of firearms finding their way into the hands of criminals.

SA Police Commissioner Gary Burns said the jump in the number of shootings was an "enormous concern".

His comments come after a man was shot dead at a shopping centre in Adelaide's north on Sunday morning and the arrest of five men after a loaded pistol was found in their car in the city overnight.

Mr Burns said the vast majority of the shootings have been targeted attacks linked to either drugs, debts, or domestic related.

"While the public can take some comfort that these crimes are not random, it remains a fact there are too many gun-related crimes occurring," Mr Burns said.

"However, South Australia does not stand alone on this, with most jurisdictions across Australia facing similar issues on gun crimes."

He said criminals are arming themselves through a number of ways - through theft of legitimate firearms, manufacturing and importation.

Last year South Australian police set up a specialised firearms investigation team in an effort to curb organised crime and gun violence.

"However, the battle to remove illegal weapons from our community is constant and difficult, with no one easy measure to solve this complex issue," Mr Burns said.

He said investigations into some recent shootings have been hamstrung by victims refusing to cooperate and reveal information that would assist solving the crime.

"This lack of assistance is frustrating to police and creates unnecessary fear in our community," he said.

He said anyone with information about recent shootings or the whereabouts of illegal firearms should contact Crime Stoppers.

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Armed robbers threaten 80-year-old

AN 80-year-old takeaway store owner and his daughter have been threatened with an axe and a machete during an armed robbery in northern NSW.

Police said the elderly man and his 56-year-old daughter were woken up around 1.45am (AEDT) on Sunday by loud noises at their home on Queen Elizabeth Drive at Coraki.

When they went to investigate the sounds in their adjoining takeaway food shop they were confronted by two masked men.

One of the men was armed with an axe, while the other was wielding a machete, police said.

The bandits threatened the man and woman before demanding cash and cigarettes.

They then forced the pair into the woman's Nissan Tiida car, drove them about three kilometres out of Coraki, and ordered them out of the vehicle.

Police pursued the car a short time later at Casino but the robbers managed to dump the vehicle and escape on foot.

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Iran hangs five drug smugglers: agency

IRAN has hanged five people in prison who were convicted of drug trafficking, the justice department in the southern province of Kerman said in a report by ILNA news agency.

The men sent to gallows at the prison in the city of Kerman on Wednesday had been convicted of trafficking more than a tonne of opium, ILNA said on Saturday, adding they were also found to be in possession of a number of military-grade weapons.

Kerman province lies on one of the major transit routes for narcotics smuggled into Iran from its eastern neighbours Afghanistan and Pakistan to Western countries.

Murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery are punishable by death in the Islamic republic, which has one of the highest annual execution counts in the world, alongside China, Saudi Arabia and the United States.

Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has condemned the executions, but Tehran says the death penalty is essential to maintain law and order and that it is enforced only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.

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Bodies of Japanese financier, wife found

Two men have been arrested over the double murder of a wealthy Japanese financier and his wife. Source: AAP

TWO bodies unearthed in Japan have been identified as those of a Swiss-based Japanese financier and his wife who went missing from their swanky condominium in Tokyo in December, police said.

Makoto Shimomi, 51, who ran an investment fund, and his wife Mie, 48, disappeared after leaving their luxury apartment in Tokyo's upmarket Ginza district on December 7 during a home visit.

Police dug up the bodies in a vacant lot in Tokyo's northern suburbs on Monday after receiving a tip-off and have since arrested two men in connection with the suspected double murder.

One of the bodies has already been identified as that of Makoto Shimomi by fingerprints and other evidence, a police spokesman said on Saturday.

"We have confirmed the other body as that of the wife as its DNA matched that of her parent."

One of those arrested, 43-year-old fishery company executive Tsuyoshi Watanabe, reportedly admitted to the killing and told investigators he held a grudge against the fund manager because of investment losses.

"I strangled the couple because he was responsible for me losing hundreds of millions of yen (millions of dollars)," he was quoted as telling police.

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