STPL News - Somerville Times & Peninsula Local

12/01/2026

‼️𝟱𝟬 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦. 𝗡𝗢 𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗪𝗘𝗥𝗦. $𝟭 𝗠𝗜𝗟𝗟𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗥𝗘𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗗‼️

It has been 50 years since eight-year-old Eloise Worledge vanished from her bedroom in Beaumaris. No witnesses. No trace. No arrests.

Today, Victoria Police have announced a $1 million reward in a renewed push to finally uncover what happened to Eloise and to identify those responsible.

Detectives say someone, somewhere, knows something. A conversation. A confession. A detail that never sat right.

This case has haunted Victoria for half a century. For Eloise’s family, there has been no closure. No goodbye. Just silence.

Police are urging anyone with information, no matter how small it may seem, to come forward.

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🙏 If this story reaches the right person, it could finally bring answers.

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12/01/2026

🦈 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗢𝗳𝗳 𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗝𝗲𝘁 𝗦𝗸𝗶 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴

A whaler shark has been reported off Tassells Cove, Safety Beach, after a jet ski rider spotted a dorsal fin breaking the surface about 400 metres from shore.

The public sighting was logged on the Dorsal Watch platform on Monday afternoon. It follows recent white shark reports off Portsea late last month, as warmer summer conditions continue to bring increased shark activity along the Mornington Peninsula coastline.

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12/01/2026

🚨 𝗥𝘆𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗻 𝗝𝗲𝘁 𝗦𝗸𝗶 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗻𝗱 $𝟭𝟭,𝟯𝟬𝟬 𝗜𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗶𝘁 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗦𝗲𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱

Police allege a Rye man was about to leave a local property with a stolen South Australian jet ski when officers executed a warrant and arrested him. Police also allege more than $11,300 in counterfeit money, along with other marine items and drugs, were seized.

The 32-year-old has been charged with 22 offences and bailed to appear at Dromana Magistrates’ Court on 12 February.

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12/01/2026

𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬 𝗦𝗨𝗦’: 𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗺𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗛𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗮𝘀𝗵

A Hastings parking sign dispute that sparked “money grab” claims has taken a new turn.

Council told STPL News the stickers were a temporary fix because contractor-installed signs contained incorrect parking information, and that no infringements were issued at the locations “over the period”.

Hastings MP Paul Mercurio later posted that the Mayor contacted him and said High Street is now 1P from 9am–5pm Monday to Saturday, with Sundays and public holidays not affected.

Was this a simple contractor error, or is Council using the contractor explanation to deflect community backlash?

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11/01/2026

Mornington Peninsula and Frankston Beach Report | Week Commencing 12/01/26

Conditions are mixed across Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula for the week starting 12 January 2026, with water quality a key consideration, Very High to Extreme UV levels early in the week, and a midweek shift to stronger winds, showers and possible thunderstorms....

Conditions are mixed across Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula for the week starting 12 January 2026, with water quality a key consideration, Very High to Extreme UV levels early in the week, and a midweek shift to stronger winds, showers and possible thunderstorms.

11/01/2026

𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗪𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗰𝘂𝗲𝘀

Emergency services have rescued three people after multiple reports of people in trouble in the water off Frankston Pier last week.

Victoria Police also received reports of people dangerously jumping off the pier into deep water and are urging everyone to take extra precautions near the water during extreme heat and windy conditions.

This serves as an important reminder that conditions can change quickly around piers and deep water, especially in hot and windy weather.

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09/01/2026

🚒 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽𝘀 𝗪𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗩𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗮 𝗜𝘀 “𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆”

Firefighter organisations have issued a stark open letter warning that Victoria is not bushfire ready, raising concerns about aging fire trucks, frontline resourcing, funding transparency and fuel-reduction burning.

The warning is statewide, but the issues raised are directly relevant to communities across Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula, where bush-interface areas, coastal scrub and semi-rural townships face bushfire risk each summer.

The groups say firefighters are heading into what could be a severe season without the level of equipment and investment they believe is required to properly protect the community.

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09/01/2026

Cut Through The Noise: Fixed Placement, Local Audience, Real Visibility

STPL News is now offering fixed-placement online advertising for Mornington Peninsula and Frankston businesses, reaching 100,000 website visitors a month, 7,000 daily e-news subscribers and 1–2 million Facebook views monthly. Print advertising also returns in February 2026 with 10,000 copies distributed each month....

STPL News is now offering fixed-placement online advertising for Mornington Peninsula and Frankston businesses, reaching 100,000 website visitors a month, 7,000 daily e-news subscribers and 1–2 million Facebook views monthly. Print advertising also returns in February 2026 with 10,000 copies distr...

08/01/2026

‼️ 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝗻 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝗮 𝗔𝘀 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗥𝘆𝗲 𝗣𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵

Police are investigating after a man’s body was found floating near Rye Pier on Thursday morning.

The discovery was the 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆, after police were also called to a campsite in Rosebud earlier that morning where another man was found deceased.

Victoria Police say the circumstances surrounding the Rye Pier death are still under investigation, including whether it is suspicious.

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08/01/2026

‼️ 𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗔𝘁 𝗥𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗯𝘂𝗱 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀

Police have attended the Rosebud Foreshore Camping grounds after a man was found dead at the site.

Officers on the scene told STPL News the man was believed to be in his late 40s to early 50s and appeared to be experiencing homelessness, with a makeshift camp located nearby. Police say the death is not being treated as suspicious.

STPL News attended the scene after receiving a tip-off from a member of the public.

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If you have news to report, you can contact STPL News directly.

07/01/2026

🚨 𝗛𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗿𝘂𝗴 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝘁

Victoria Police say members from the Mornington Divisional Response Unit executed a drug search warrant in Hastings on 6 January, allegedly locating ICE, cannabis, GHB, prescription medications and an imitation firearm.

A 46-year-old Hastings woman has been charged with multiple offences, including trafficking a commercial quantity of drugs, and was remanded in custody until April 2026.

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06/01/2026

Extreme Heat Warning for Wednesday as Frankston and Mornington Peninsula Face Dangerous Conditions

VicEmergency has issued an Advice for extreme heat across Victoria ahead of Wednesday 7 January. This report outlines expected conditions for Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula, including local temperature ranges, fire risk and practical safety reminders....

VicEmergency has issued an Advice for extreme heat across Victoria ahead of Wednesday 7 January. This report outlines expected conditions for Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula, including local temperature ranges, fire risk and practical safety reminders.