The biggest Australian news stories of the year

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• Queensland couple lose dream home and $300K deposit in scam

  A fraudulent email posing as their conveyancer robbed a Gold Coast couple of a quarter of a million dollars and they're not the only ones caught by the scheme.

• Man in critical condition after shark attack in Queensland

  A man is in a critical condition after a reported shark attack in Queensland.

• Olivia Hussey Eisley, star of famed 1968 film Romeo and Juliet, dies aged 73

  "It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Olivia Hussey Eisley, who went peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones on December 27th," the statement posted on her Instagram reads.

• Three teens charged after massive search on quiet Sydney street

  The manhunt plunged a neighbourhood into lockdown with PolAir, dog squad and tactical response group called in following the highway pursuit.

• Australian property group behind 41-level Gold Coast tower enters administration

  The company cited challenging conditions in the construction and property development sector.

• Extent of Boxing Day fires revealed as blaze continues to burn

  The fire has burnt 74,000 hectares, roughly the size of Singapore, and is expected to burn for weeks to come.

• Disability pensioner's home destroyed in fire police believe was deliberately lit

  "How do you explain something like this, no one deserves to be treated like this."

• Putin apologises to Azerbaijani leader for 'tragic' plane crash

  The Kremlin said air defence systems were firing near Grozny on Wednesday due to a Ukrainian drone strike, but stopped short of saying one of these hit the plane.

• Police seek to identify two men after shooting murder of Queensland woman

  Chloe Mason was found unresponsive by emergency services on Railway Parade in Caboolture just after midnight on December 22.

• Watch the moment a missing dog returned home and rang the doorbell

  After a nearly weeklong search, Athena found her way home to her Florida family in time for Christmas Eve.

• 35 years after deadly earthquake hit Aussie city, it risks a future one

  In only six seconds thousands of buildings were reduced to rubble and 13 people when a natural disaster hit Newcastle on December 28, 1989.

• Driver charged after allegedly hitting Sam Kerr's grandmother in crash

  Coral Kerr was allegedly hit while she was getting off a bus.

• Australian boy undergoes surgery after taxi veers into pedestrians in New York

  An Australian mother and son, who are said to be visiting New York, are among those injured when a taxi struck six pedestrians in Manhattan.