Missing Sydney teen 'sleeps with a teddy'

A TEENAGER who was last spotted climbing into a car outside her Sydney home two days ago is "just a baby" whose family is desperate to find her safe, her father says.

Police say 14-year-old Krystal Muhieddine was seen getting into an unknown silver sedan, which bore P-plates, outside her home in leafy Hunters Hill at 5.30am (AEDT) on Tuesday.

On Thursday her parents Wally and Suzanne pleaded for their daughter to make contact.

"We can sort this out. Just come home," Mrs Muhieddine told reporters.

She said Krystal - the second-youngest of four girls - had sneaked out to see a movie on Friday, telling a big sister she had her mother's permission before lying to Mrs Muhieddine, claiming a friend's mother was planning to collect her.

A tearful Mrs Muhieddine told reporters she had given Krystal a talking-to - "just normal parent stuff" - but that everything at home was otherwise well.

"She's never done this before," she said.

The high-schooler's friends say she has recently spoken about a boy, and her parents say she might have been communicating with someone online before she disappeared.

But her father says she's never had a boyfriend.

"She's sweet, she's innocent, she's young," he told reporters.

"She's not street-wise - she's actually quite bright and sophisticated in so many other ways but, you know, she sleeps with a teddy bear.

"She took her teddy bear with her."

He said it was the first time she had been anywhere on her own and he and his wife were losing sleep.

"If you're with Krystal, you need to understand she is a baby, she is not an adult, she's tall but she is actually a baby. You need to call us and bring her home safely," he said.

Ryde Local Area Command Detective Inspector Richard Puffett said investigators were scouring social media as well as trying to track down the sedan in which Krystal was last seen.

It is believed she left with a green bag containing clothes and had a small amount of cash.

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US hot sauce factory must cut smell: court

A judge has ordered a factory that produces a popular chili sauce to stop emitting annoying odours. Source: AAP

A US judge has ordered a factory that produces the popular Sriracha chilli sauce to stop emitting annoying odours in a ruling that has left some nearby residents worried about a possible loss of jobs at the site.

Judge Robert H. O'Brien on Tuesday ruled in favour of the city of Irwindale, where Sriracha recently relocated, saying sauce maker Huy Fong Foods must stop any operations that could be causing the odours and make unspecified changes to mitigate them.

The company had no immediate comment, but a few neighbours interviewed on Wednesday dismissed the complaints and worried that jobs might be lost if the plant is forced to close.

"I don't want it shut down because I think a lot of people will lose their jobs," said Marta Torres, 47.

"In two years it has never smelled as much as now, but I think it's OK."

Torres said the smell wafts into her home late in the day in an area where many of her neighbours like to cook with spices.

"It's something you can deal with," she said.

"It doesn't bother us."

O'Brien's preliminary injunction was issued in response to a lawsuit filed October 21 by Irwindale, a small industrial city east of Los Angeles and home to nearly 1500 people.

It wasn't immediately known if the food company plans to appeal.

The company has said there is no reason to close the plant now because harvest season and the subsequent grinding of red-hot jalapeno peppers - the key ingredient of the sauce - have passed.

As a result, the injunction might not have an immediate impact on the company's production or the country's hot sauce supply as Huy Fong continues its year-round mixing and bottling.

The judge acknowledged there was a lack of credible evidence linking complaints of breathing trouble and watery eyes to the factory.

But he said for residents the odour that could be reasonably inferred to be emanating from the facility is "extremely annoying, irritating and offensive to the senses warranting consideration as a public nuisance".

Some residents said living with the smell is bearable.

Randall Acosta, 45, who lives in an apartment complex across the street from the factory, said the scent can be strong sometimes but it makes him hungry.

"Why are people complaining about the chilli smell when this is an industrial area?" he asked.

"There's burning rubber down the street. There are other dangers in this city."

The case could still go to trial, but Irwindale officials would like to see a settlement outside court and do not want to shut down Sriracha altogether, City Attorney Fred Galante told the Los Angeles Times.

"We're going to try to keep having a conversation with Huy Fong," he said, and find a collaborative way to address the odour problem.

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Treasurers settle on job-boosting plan

THE federal government has offered potentially billions of dollars in tax incentives to the states if they sell off public assets and put the money into new job-creating infrastructure.

Treasurer Joe Hockey made the proposal at a meeting with state and territory treasurers in Canberra on Wednesday, before Prime Minister Tony Abbott's first talks with the premiers and chief ministers on December 13.

The treasurers also agreed in principle to lower the GST-free threshold on goods bought online from overseas retailers.

The infrastructure incentive and the GST change are aimed at creating jobs in big and small business as mining investment tapers off.

NSW Treasurer Mike Baird said Treasury secretary Martin Parkinson gave the meeting a sobering assessment of the national economy, pointing to subdued growth over the next two to three years.

However, Mr Baird said the infrastructure incentive offer was very significant.

"They have made a proposal ... that any state that undertakes a long-term lease or a privatisation of assets that releases capital on states' balance sheets, they are happy to provide an incentive payment to make that more attractive and to put that towards additional infrastructure," Mr Baird said.

While Mr Hockey's office did not provide any details, Infrastructure Partnerships Australia chief Brendan Lyon said he understood the incentive to be a "company tax equivalence payment" which could only be spent on new state infrastructure.

States were well aware of the potential size of these payments, My Lyon said.

In the case of selling Queensland's public-owned electricity sector, the incentive figure was $472 million in recurrent funding.

It is likely the federal parliament would need to amend tax laws for the change to go ahead.

Acknowledging past political problems with privatisation, Mr Baird said before any deals were finalised the states would have to "take that to their parties and they have to take that to their communities".

Queensland Treasurer Tim Nicholls said it was a generous offer, but it would not be the "determining factor" if his state decided to go down the privatisation path.

"We've always said we are going to look at the assets we have," he said.

A report by Infrastructure Australia published in June identified up to $139 billion in state-owned ports, roads, freight railways, water, airports and electricity assets that could be sold or long-term leased to the private sector.

In a bid to boost the retail sector, the treasurers will finalise a new agreement on the GST treatment of online goods by March 2014.

At the moment, overseas-bought goods valued at less than $1000 are exempt from the 10 per cent GST.

Retailers say it should be lowered to about $20, which would level the playing field.

The states say it would also capture extra GST revenue for schools, roads and hospitals.

A report produced for the Labor government found the cost of collecting the revenue would far outweigh the revenue itself.

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Simon Gittany guilty of murdering fiancee

A Sydney judge is set to rule on whether Simon Gittany threw his fiancee off a balcony. Source: AAP

SIMON Gittany has been found guilty of murdering his fiancee, Lisa Cecilia Harnum, by throwing her off a high-rise Sydney apartment balcony.

Gittany, 40, stood stock still and his girlfriend Rachelle Louise started screaming as Justice Lucy McCallum handed down her verdict in the Supreme Court in Sydney on Wednesday.

Ms Louise yelled abuse at the judge, and was taken from the court in floods of tears.

Other family members stormed out of court and the judge briefly adjourned the verdict to restore calm.

Justice McCallum found Gittany was in a state of "uncontrollable rage" on the morning of Ms Harnum's death after he discovered she was leaving him.

"He maintained that rage and in that state, carried her to the balcony and unloaded her over the edge," Justice McCallum said.

In a verdict that took more than four hours to deliver, Justice McCallum gave a damning assessment of Gittany's character, finding he was "controlling, dominating and, at times, abusive" of Ms Harnum.

She found he lied "with telling ease" and distorted the truth when he took the stand in an attempt to discredit the woman he murdered.

"At many times in his evidence the accused struck me as being a person playing a role, telling a story which fit with the objective evidence but which did no more than that," Justice McCallum said.

"His account of what happened appeared to exist on borrowed detail.

"It lacked originality and the subtlety of actual experience."

Ms Harnum's family members smiled and embraced after the verdict was handed down.

In a judge-alone trial that gripped the public, the Crown alleged Gittany threw Ms Harnum off their 15th floor CBD apartment balcony on July 30, 2011 in a fit of "apoplectic" rage that she was planning to leave him.

Gittany maintained his innocence, saying Ms Harnum ran onto the balcony and disappeared over the edge as he desperately tried to reach her.

The trial heard allegations Gittany was brutal and controlling of his 30-year-old Canadian fiancee, subjecting her to the "most intense surveillance" imaginable.

Gittany installed CCTV in his apartment and used a computer program to monitor Ms Harnum's text messages, emails and internet usage.

He said he did so because she had a secret she refused to tell him.

Text messages showed Gittany was so jealous of other men, Ms Harnum had to look at the ground when she was outside, the court heard.

In the witness stand, Gittany admitted some of his behaviour towards Ms Harnum was controlling, but he emphatically and repeatedly denied he threw her off the balcony.

Sixty-nine seconds before her death, Gittany was captured on camera dragging Ms Harnum back into the apartment as she screamed "Help me, God help me".

But the defence claimed Ms Harnum, who suffered from bulimia, may have climbed over the balcony to escape Gittany, as a cry for attention or in a suicide bid.

Justice McCallum firmly rejected suggestions Ms Harnum was suicidal that morning or that she deliberately climbed over the balcony to escape Gittany.

"I have stood on that balcony," the judge said.

"I simply can't accept any person with a will to survive could have regarded it as an option for escape.

"Lisa Harnum may have been impulsive, maladaptive and over-sensitive. She may have been in a state of acute fear.

"... But I do not think she was deranged."

A tear-stained Ms Louise briefly emerged from court and asked the dozens of reporters surrounding her for a cigarette.

She refused to comment.

Waiting for Justice McCallum to return to the bench, Gittany's sister told him, "You didn't get a fair trial".

"I know," he replied.

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Go Back series wins prestigious award

THE controversial SBS series Go Back To Where You Came From 2 has won a prestigious International Emmy award.

The TV series took out the gong in the non-scripted entertainment category at a ceremony in New York on Monday.

It was Australia's only nomination at the awards and beat out competition from South Africa, Israel and Columbia.

The awards are presented by the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and touted as one of the most esteemed media prizes in the world.

The three-part series, produced by Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder (CJZ) and aired on SBS in 2012, followed six prominent and outspoken Australians as they experienced the life of a refugee.

"It's great to see an original Australian show resonate so strongly around the world," CJZ executive producer Michael Cordell said in a statement on Tuesday.

"We're incredibly proud of this series. To be nominated was wonderful but to win is sublime.

Go Back's first series won two Rose d'Ors at the festival in 2012, one of the world's most coveted television awards.

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Madonna in Haiti to see Penn aid work

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Nov 25 AP - Madonna is in Haiti to visit humanitarian projects that ex-husband Sean Penn has been overseeing since the Caribbean nation's devastating earthquake in 2010.

Penn said in a brief phone call to The Associated Press that he had invited Madonna, with whom he has "maintained a great friendship over the years," to visit several times and that she had come with her son Rocco.

He said they arrived a "couple of days" ago, and he wasn't sure when she would leave.

"She's here, she's seeing, she's made the effort to come here, and I'm thrilled by that," Penn said, adding that he hoped Haiti might inspire her to seek out a cause in the country.

"She has a unique platform, and wherever she chooses to bring that to, it's very well."

Madonna's been busy posting photos on Instagram.

One shows her posing with others at a new hospital built by public health pioneer Dr Paul Farmer in the central part of the country.

The caption: "Revolution of Love in Haiti." Another picture shows a view of the mountains at dusk. The caption: "Sunset in Haiti. This is Heaven!"

Penn has served as an ambassador-at-large for Haiti since early 2012.

He received the recognition for his work as head of a humanitarian group he co-founded in the aftermath of the earthquake, the J/P Haitian Relief Organisation.

The group has focused on housing and relocating thousands of people from a golf course that was among hundreds of impromptu settlements that sprang up after the quake.

His group recently sponsored five Haitian runners to participate in the New York marathon.

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ANZ lifts business customer satisfaction

ANZ has lifted its standing among business customers in recent months, while rival National Australia Bank remains at the bottom of the pack among the big four banks.

A monthly survey of satisfaction among the big four's business clients shows ANZ, which has lagged alongside NAB for the past year, had improved its average rating in the past two months.

ANZ had an average satisfaction rating of 7.2 out of 10 in October, closing the gap on the Commonwealth Bank, which averaged 7.5 and Westpac, which scored 7.4, according to the DBM Consultants' Business Financial Services Monitor (BFSM).

Meanwhile NAB continued to trail its rivals with an average rating of 7.0, despite being the country's biggest business bank.

DBM Director Maria Claridad said the increase in ANZ's rating had come mostly from micro businesses, which have an annual turnover of less than $1 million.

"Micro businesses reported the greatest increase in satisfaction, with ANZ up by 0.4 points in the past six months," Ms Claridad said.

The BFSM is based on interviews with 20,000 businesses a year.

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Customs warns of 'cocaine invasion'

CUSTOMS is warning of a "cocaine invasion" into Australia as international drug smuggling syndicates learn sophisticated new tricks.

Customs and Border Protection Service chief Michael Pezzullo says organised crime is "mounting an assault" on our borders and threatening our way of life.

Mr Pezzullo says the threat to the nation's national security from this "unseen war" is serious.

"If this indeed was a visible war, we would have mobilised our armed forces and put the nation on the highest state of security alert," Mr Pezzullo told a conference in Melbourne on Monday.

"Instead it is an unseen war, where the enemy does not have a singular or discernible face and does not march under a flag."

Mr Pezzullo singled out cocaine as a particular threat.

The journey of cocaine to Australia's shores is becoming increasingly sophisticated and complex, with various transnational criminal alliances and joint ventures having been established in recent years, challenging enforcement in new ways, he said.

He is particularly concerned about trans-Pacific cocaine importation, either by way of recreational aircraft or through sea cargo.

Mr Pezzullo warns his organisation will not be good enough to protect the borders in the future unless it embraces comprehensive reforms.

"Incremental changes and tinkering at the edges just will not cut it - we need to undertake a complete transformation and all-consuming reform of the way we operate and the way we do business," he said.

Mr Pezzullo also talked about federal government budget cuts that have seen more than half a billion dollars and 740 staff cut from the service over the past five years.

He says there's no more fat to cut.

"We will soon be going through bone and out the other side," he said.

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Body may be missing Tas student: police

A BODY discovered on a river bank north of Launceston is believed to be that of a student who disappeared last month.

Natasha Narang was reported missing to the University of Tasmania in early October.

A search turned up items belonging to her on the edge of the Tamar River several days later.

About noon on Sunday, police were called to a section of the river near Rosevears were a body had been discovered 15 metres above the high water mark.

Police say at this point there do not appear to be any suspicious circumstances.

However, the scene will be forensically examined and a post mortem conducted.

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Hailstorm pounds the Gabba

NT residents are being urged to make final preparations as tropical Cyclone Alessia heads for the coast.

STORMS that have mostly passed through Brisbane are now threatening the Redlands, North Stradbroke Island, the Gold Coast, Logan and Scenic Rim Areas.

The Weather Bureau has warned of dangerous thunderstorms near Cleveland and Logan.

These storms are moving east, southeast and are forecast to affect Coomera, Dunwich, Peel Island, Point Lookout and Amity Point soon after 3pm and waters off Tweed Heads and North Stradbroke Island by 3.35pm.

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Other severe thunderstorms were located near northern Moreton Island. They are forecast to affect Tangalooma soon after 3pm.

The Gabba is hit by a quick but intense storm cell that produced small hail during day four of the first Ashes Test. Picture: Adam Head

Destructive winds, heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding and large hailstones are likely.

Earlier, storms hit Brisbane, with hail falling at the Gabba.

Places in the firing line are Brisbane, Logan, Ipswich, Somerset and the Redlands.

The Weather Bureau warns that storms have built up in the Lake Manchester area, west of Brisbane.

Hail at the Gabba as a storm hits day four of the first Ashes test. Picture: Jono Searle.

They are forecast to affect Wacol and Archerfield by 2.05 pm and Slacks Creek, Tingalpa Reservoir and Camp Hill by 2.35pm.

Damaging winds and large hailstones are likely.

Storms have stopped play at the Gabba about 2pm.

Residents in the Wide Bay and Burnett, southeast coast and parts of the Central Highlands and Coalfields, Capricornia, Maranoa and Warrego and Darling Downs and Granite Belt also should prepare.

The Gabba is hit by a quick but intense storm cell that produced small hail during day four of the first Ashes Test. Picture: Adam Head

Places likely to see some activity include Maroochydore, Gympie, Kingaroy, Noosa and Biloela.

Earlier, The Courier-Mail reported sunny conditions are forecast for the first cricket Test at the Gabba on Monday while in the north graziers are bracing for storms and showers as the first cyclone of the season pushes moisture inland over the drought-hit Gulf of Carpentaria.

It follows a weekend of storms that started in the Maranoa and Warrego yesterday before sweeping southeast, roughing up the Inglewood, Warwick, Lockyer Valley, Laidley, Rosewood and Ipswich districts.

Weather Bureau forecaster Michael Knepp said there would be little chance of rain saving England at the Gabba.

At least one home has been destroyed by a tornado that whipped through northern NSW.

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"Of course we still might get a storm or showers today,'' he said. "But after that, the whole week should be okay," he said.

"The next round of activity won't be until late Friday or Saturday when a trough comes through.

"There's very little chance of any interruptions with the cricket tomorrow.''

Storms roll over Brisbane, as seen from Kangaroo Point Cliffs. Pic: Adam Smith

Mr Knepp said Cyclone Alessia was moving east towards Queensland at 20km/hr and - despite being a long way away - its moisture-laden winds were expected to bring showers and storms to the Gulf and northern parts.

The cyclone was 100km off the coast at 9am and flood warnings had been issued for the NT.

The monsoon trough is expected to drift south through the week, allowing monsoon rain areas to extend from the Gulf Country to Queensland's east north coast and Tablelands.

It will see scattered showers and thunderstorms from the northern interior across to the central coast.

Storms roll over Brisbane, as seen from Kangaroo Point Cliffs. Pic: Adam Smith

Rollingstone just north of Townsville had 120mm overnight, the highest falls recorded in the state in the 24 hours to 9am.

"There have been falls of 50mm to 60mm around Normanton, Kowanyama had 28mm, Miranda Downs 30mm but it's likely there were heavier falls around that that,'' he said.

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"We don't have a lot of rain gauges out there in the Gulf so we just don't know.

Storms roll over Brisbane, as seen from Kangaroo Point Cliffs. Pic: Adam Smith

"How much we get up there is highly dependent on the movement of the tropical cyclone. If it moves towards the NT-Queensland border as a low, we could get quite a lot of rainfall.''

Some cumulative rainfall totals over the past week include Bowen 295.3mm, Georgetown 74mm, Richmond 44.8mm and Charters Towers 53.6mm.

Overnight in the southeast, Junction View, southeast of Toowoomba, had 69mm, Nanango 62mm, nearby Brooklands 72mm, Amberley 52mm, Churchill 55mm, Coolangatta 26mm, Currumbin Creek 42mm, North Stradbroke Island 37mm, O'Reilly's 36mm, Tallebudgera Creek Dam 41mm.

Goondiwindi had 31mm while in the north Mareeba had 79mm, Chillagoe 50mm, Ingham 58mm and Coen on Cape York 67mm. Falls around Brisbane were mostly in the teens.

Storm clouds north of Moonie, Western Darling Downs, Saturday afternoon. Pic: Jeff Higgins. Higgins Storm Chasing

By tomorrow, the monsoon trough should extend from the northwest, across the tropical interior and south to the Fraser Island area with showers and thunderstorms contracting to its north.

A drier air mass should dominate to the south.

Last night, forecasters said the line of storms that barrelled through the southeast corner had started to weaken by 10.30pm and were likely to reach the Sunshine Coast by 1am.

"They have weakened over the past hour but we are still seeing some intense bursts of rainfall and the odd significant wind gust," said Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Brett Harrison.

Top of Bunya Mountains looking west out over the Darling Downs. Things are really brewing up out here today! Picture courtesy: Jeff Higgins / Higgins Storm Chasing

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Early reports suggested one house was completely demolished and up to 30 other homes were reportedly damaged in the Rosewood and Pine Mountain area near Ipswich, although this could not be confirmed by emergency services.

"We have dodged three big storms lately, but we really copped it tonight,'' said Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale late on Saturday.

"One has collapsed completely and 25 to 30 have got damage at various degrees.

Bowen certainly has copped some rain!! Thankfully tide was out bit still water is still through some houses and cars. Picture: Tash Edwards

"No-one has been injured so far as we know.''

On Saturday night, the heaviest falls were recorded at Junction View, south of Gatton, with up to 62mm of rain dumped in just over an hour.

Wind gusts of up to 92km/h were recorded at Amberley at the height of the storm.

Golf ball-size hail was dropped near Inglewood, Ipswich and Warwick, but senior forecaster Brett Harrison said there had been no reports since 5.30pm Saturday.

Bowen certainly has copped some rain!! Thankfully tide was out bit still water is still through some houses and cars. Picture: Tash Edwards

Energex reported more than 5000 homes across the southeast were without power at around 10pm.

More showers and thunderstorms are expected to brew on Sunday, with the activity likely to be closer to the southeast coast.

Mr Harrison said November had certainly made up for a late start to the storm season.

"This time of year is when we expect there to be a large number of severe thunderstorms," he said.

Bowen certainly has copped some rain!! Thankfully tide was out bit still water is still through some houses and cars. Picture: Tash Edwards

"The main trigger is the upper trough."

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A severe thunderstorm warning had been issued at 10.58pm for damaging wind and heavy rainfall in the Sunshine Coast and Cherbourg Shire areas and for parts of the Gympie, Moreton Bay, Somerset, South Burnett and Toowoomba areas.

Damaging winds and heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding were likely, the Bureau of Meteorology warned.

The warning came after several thunderstorms rolled across southern Queensland throughout Saturday.

Residents reported seeing hail stones, lightning strikes, strong winds and heavy rain across the area.

By 9.15pm, the State Emergency Services had received 47 requests for help through the Rosewood, Hatton Vale, Marburg, Amberley, Ipswich and Brisbane CBD areas.

A spokeswoman said the requests related to structural damage to homes, fallen trees and general storm and flood damage.

"There was significant roof damage to houses in Lower Mt Walker, near Laidley," she said.

A 92 km/h wind gust was recorded at Amberley Airport at 7.45pm, an 87 km/h wind gust was recorded at Gold Coast Seaway at 8.30pm and a 79 km/h wind gust was recorded at Inner Beacon (Moreton Bay) at 8:55pm.

Wild weather also battered northern NSW on Saturday, with a twister destroying at least one home.

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- additional reporting by Kate McKenna

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