Bec Symons
Bec Symons joined the ABC in 2016 after working at the Latrobe Valley Express and WIN News. After presenting the ABC Gippsland Mornings program for five years, she has returned to her hard news roots and delves into issues affecting the broader community. She files ABC news for our website, radio and TV.
Latest by Bec Symons
Paramedic Phil 'Teddy Bear' Bell consumes 5,000 calories a day and a lot of anime chasing one strong ambition
If he is not in his Ambulance Victoria uniform, Phil Bell is dressed as his favourite anime character and pulling four-wheel drives and boats along the streets of his country town, a gentle "circus freak" in pursuit of a big dream.
'Ripped away from us': Hundreds gather to farewell slain Victorian doctor Ash Gordon
Seven hundred people attended the funeral and hundreds more watched online as the Box Hill GP was laid to rest after his alleged murder earlier this month.
‘What's the world come to?': Family of slain Victorian GP calls for crackdown on crime
Ash Gordon beat the odds in his quest to dedicate his life to caring for others. On the weekend, the 33-year-old was fatally stabbed during a home invasion. His loved ones want the world to know how proud they were of the remarkable man.
KFC franchisee charged with trafficking cocaine, other drug offences
Matthew Jones, 39, was arrested as part of Victoria Police's Viper Taskforce investigation into organised crime and drug trafficking.
Vigilante who kidnapped, tortured and executed Victorian dad sentenced to life behind bars
Albert Thorn was "at the heart" of the savage assault and murder of Bradley Lyons in 2018. He will be nearing 90 by the time he is eligible for parole.
Chef's plan to lure a woman to Australia to have a baby they could sexually abuse, deemed 'abhorrent' by judge
Victorian man Jonathon Edwards could serve just 20 months in prison after pleading guilty to possessing more than 6,300 files containing images of child sexual abuse and torture.
Medical duty of care should extend to data, academic says, after routine pathology test led to Russian hack
Lynda George felt violated when she learnt her personal information was lost to hackers in a data breach. And to make matters worse, it took the hacked company two months to notify her of the issue.
Former MP Russell Northe jailed for gambling more than $170,000 of electoral office funds
Former Victorian MP Russell Northe has been sentenced to nearly two years in prison for using more than $170,000 of public money to fuel his gambling addiction.
Lily's family home was her 'happy place'. A shock bushfire has them picking up the pieces
When the Saunders family made the decision to flee their east Gippsland home, they escaped with their pets and the clothes on their backs. They returned to find their "happy place" in ruins.
Three out of control bushfires have residents and campers fleeing parts of Gippsland
Three major bushfires are burning out of control in eastern Victoria, as thousands of campers who took to the bush for the long weekend pack up and flee.
Judge to decide whether imprisonment appropriate for former Morwell MP given mental illness
Former regional Victorian MP Russell Northe will find out next month whether he will be jailed for using almost $180,000 of public money to fuel his gambling addiction.
Public safety warning follows woman's Phillip Island selfie plunge
Police say the accident highlights the need for more caution when taking tourist photos.
Jake had his whole life ahead of him, until a penchant for gambling took control
As a landmark study finds 4 per cent of suicides are gambling-related, a family speaks out about the impact gambling had on their son, who also had depression and suicided 12 years ago.
Mine for Australia's single biggest carbon emitter set to be 'repurposed', sparking concerns over future use
An end date has been locked in for a power plant responsible for 30 per cent of Victoria's electricity generation but the future of a gaping hole beside it is less certain.
'How can this be real?' Sister in disbelief that killers who 'hunted down' defenceless brother could be free in three years
Nicholas Henry died in 2021 after he was bashed and stabbed eight times in Morwell, Victoria. Three of those involved have been sentenced in the Supreme Court, but Mr Henry's sister says it "doesn't feel like justice".
Five seals have been found tangled in a net near a popular tourist site. Rescuers fear there may be more
Marine scientists hope to put drones underwater to find other marine life which may be trapped.
Armed robber apologises, pays back money and asks for lift home after seeing victim at pokies
A Gippsland man who broke into a family's home carrying an imitation firearm will be released from prison after a judge said he showed "immediate remorse".
Family's nightmares over slain teen's 'unmerciful' stabbing death
The family of stabbing victim Nicholas Henry say they have nightmares of his brutal end as he tried to flee three young men who "hunted" him down.
Sale man pleads guilty to killing Dalibor Pantic but won't lead police to his body
The location of Dalibor Pantic's body remains unknown, despite his killer, Sam Gordon Blake, today pleading guilty to manslaughter in the Melbourne Supreme Court.
Gippsland resident chances across young man missing for five days, drives him to grandma's house
Owen Townsend, 25, went missing last Friday. Police suspect he may have become stuck in a swamp.
Duck hunter urges shooters to 'dob in' rule-breakers as inquiry hears animal welfare concerns
A Victorian parliamentary inquiry into duck shooting hears the activity has mental health benefits for hunters, but that opponents have become targets for online abuse.
Andrew Price and Jake Brown given seven-year sentences over killing of Jarrad Lovison
Jake Brown and Andrew Price will be eligible for parole in less than three years.
Justice for young dad tortured by 'vigilantes', executed and left in a shallow grave, as seventh person is convicted
When Bradley Lyons lay down on his bed for an afternoon nap after working the early Sunday shift at a Lakes Entrance supermarket in December 2018, he was blissfully unaware that several people were conspiring to kill him.
First big battery at an Australian coal site goes live in Victoria
The battery at the site of the decommissioned Hazelwood power station has the capacity to power about 75,000 homes for an hour during the evening peak.
Jarrad Lovison's father calls son's killers Jake Brown and Andrew Price 'sinister dogs' at pre-sentencing hearing
The Victorian Supreme Court has heard a full account of the night the Newborough man ingested GHB at gunpoint in remote bushland in the state's east in 2020.