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Jade Toomey
Canberra, ACT
Jade is a multiplatform reporter at ABC Canberra. She has previously worked as a radio newsreader, and as a reporter in the Darwin and Townsville newsrooms. She is originally from the NSW Central Coast. Twitter: @jadeetoomey
Latest by Jade Toomey
Former Canberra childcare worker jailed for indecently touching young boy
By Jade Toomey
Muhammad Ali is sentenced to 18 months in prison after being found guilty of indecently touching a child at the centre where he worked.
Not all Canberrans will benefit from a scheme allowing pharmacists to prescribe the contraceptive pill
By Jade Toomey
Five ACT pharmacies will take part in a trial letting chemists resupply some oral contraceptives, but with tight requirements — including that patients have been prescribed the medication for over two years, are aged between 18 and 35, and are using it for contraceptive purposes.
Updated
Peter's cancer has a devastating survival rate. He's fended off three tumours but another's growing
By Jade Toomey
More than 1,800 Australians lose their battle with brain cancer each year, as advocates decry a survival rate which hasn't budged in 30 years.
Updated
Man who raped, assaulted partner contacted her 560 times after she fled interstate, court hears
By Jade Toomey
A Canberra man convicted of violently attacking his girlfriend, including hitting her with a horse-riding crop on two separate occasions, is sentenced to more than 13 years in prison.
'Extraordinary injustice': Canberra man found not guilty of rape admits to having sex with victim despite previous denial
By Jade Toomey
An ACT Supreme Court Justice labels the task of sentencing a man cleared of rape as an "extraordinary injustice" after fresh admissions he had sex with the victim despite previously denying all allegations.
Updated
Canberra No campaigners rally against 'fun feeling of unity' two weeks out from referendum
By Jade Toomey
Ngambri woman Leah House says she supports a "progressive No" vote as those for and against an Indigenous Voice to Parliament rally in the nation's capital.
World's largest bicycle component manufacturer issues global review of part after widespread reports of malfunction
By Jade Toomey
At least 2.8 million cranksets globally are set to be the subject of an inspection and review program launched this week by Shimano, the largest manufacturer of bicycle components in the world.
Updated
Portrait of WWII fascist at Croatian club in Canberra inadvertently included in soccer team photographs
By Jade Toomey
A Croatian soccer team in Canberra removed social media posts of players unwittingly posing underneath a portrait of Croatian fascist Ante Pavelić, who was responsible for war crimes, including genocide, during World War II.
Updated
'Forced to make impossible choices': Domestic demands hamper Defence's war-fighting powers
By Jade Toomey
Australia's war-fighting capability is being compromised by "near-persistent" demands to respond to domestic emergencies, according to findings from a parliamentary inquiry.
Updated
Charges dropped against Canberra man due to 'reckless' mistake in way police gathered evidence
By Jade Toomey
ACT prosecutors have been forced to abandon charges against a man accused of a violent robbery because police officers incorrectly gathered the evidence used to identify him.
Updated
Jury fails to reach verdict in trial of Canberra retail worker accused of raping customer
By Jade Toomey
Abhishek Timalsina admitted to having sex with the woman in a Westfield Belconnen art store in November 2022, but argued it was a consensual interaction because "her expression, her face and her body language" showed she was "willing".
Canberra supermarket operator fined $16,500 for tampering with food expiry dates
By Jade Toomey
The court saw CCTV footage from the supermarket, showing staff removing use-by and best-before date stickers and replacing them with extended dates.
Trial of retail worker who allegedly raped customer in shopping centre hears from accused
By Jade Toomey and Peter Lusted
Westfield Belconnen store employee Abhishek Timalsina allegedly closed the security shutters of his workplace, encouraged a woman inside to enter a staffroom and raped her in November 2022.
Updated
'You don't know the rules': Rugby referees report surge in abuse from spectators
By Jade Toomey
Hardened rugby union referees are walking away from the game amid a dramatic surge in abuse, prompting Rugby Australia to dish out tougher sanctions to offenders.
Updated
'Impersonal and caused significant distress': ACT government backflips on forced relocation of public housing tenants
By Tahlia Roy and Jade Toomey
A legal fight by three public housing tenants leads to the ACT government conceding its plan to forcibly relocate hundreds of residents is flawed.
Updated
Rachel's home insurance payments increased by $840 this year. She's just one Australian sharing the cost of more claims
By Jade Toomey
One in 25 Australians have lodged an insurance claim because of extreme weather since 2020, but should the remaining policyholders be responsible for sharing the cost of increased premiums?
Tina has been missing for five days. Her husband is publicly pleading for answers about his 'really gentle' wife
By Jade Toomey
Tina Quinn, 34, remains missing after last being seen at her Yass acreage on July 16. Authorities are expanding their search for the woman.
Updated
Canberra massage therapist who sexually assaulted six women to serve 16 months in jail
By Jade Toomey and Elizabeth Byrne
A traditional Chinese massage therapist who raped and sexually assaulted six women at his place of work is sentenced to three years and two months in jail, but will only serve 16 months.
Updated
Soccer referee accused of indecently assaulting teenager pleads not guilty, returns home to New Zealand
By Jade Toomey
A senior referee and veteran police officer accused of assaulting a teenage colleague in Canberra is cleared to return home to New Zealand.
Man accused of sexually assaulting teenage referee during Kanga Cup training event in Canberra
By Jade Toomey
The accused — a 66-year-old from New Zealand — was in the national capital to adjudicate the Kanga Cup, which this year involved about 4,000 interstate and international young soccer players.
Updated
Canberra man who choked teenagers in apparent revenge for 'slap boxing' game avoids more jail time
By Jade Toomey
A Canberra man avoids more time in prison for choking two teenage boys after a game of 'slap-boxing' gone wrong.
Bungendore landscaper who tried to import cocaine in excavator sentenced to 11 years in jail
By Jade Toomey
Timothy Engstrom is sentenced to 11 and a half years in prison over his part in a plot to import nearly 300 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the arm of an excavator from South Africa.
Updated
'You better be dead': Man who punched best friend's body fined $2,000
By Jade Toomey
A man who punched the body of his best friend after he was killed in a car crash is fined $2,000 and handed a good behaviour bond.
Office of Governor-General says no rules broken hosting daughter's wedding reception at Government House
By Jade Toomey and James Vyver
Governor-General David Hurley's daughter's wedding reception was held at Government House on March 11, 2023. Yesterday, his office told a Senate estimates hearing he was entitled to use his official Canberra residence as the venue.
Updated
ACT farmers have a bold vision for the future. But say they're being left in limbo
By Jade Toomey
Farmers say "the bush capital" is in the middle of one of its biggest transformation periods in its history, and they think it could bring thousands of tourists to the ACT.
Updated