Alleged illegal hunting activities by Chinese tourists at a Murrindindi property are part of a story in the national media spotlight.

Fairfax Newspapers and Channel 9’s 60 Minutes program aired accusations that Chinese businessman Tom Zhou organised illegal hunting activities at his ‘Balaclava’ property on Murrindindi Rd.

Mr Zhou’s links to Crown Casino, and his supposed association with colourful Chinese identities, are other dimensions to the discussion.

“High-rolling tourists are being invited to hunt and kill wombats at a luxury hunting lodge run by a Chinese businessman who is a Crown casino partner with alleged crime links,” reported Samantha Dick of The New Daily.

“Appearing in English as ‘Dude Ranch’ on Google Maps, from the front the property has a driveway that, apart from security signs, doesn’t look too out of place in the picturesque Victorian shire of Murrindindi, about 100 kms north-east of Melbourne,” said Ms Dick.

In Federal Parliament, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the allegations were part of an evolving scandal surrounding Crown.

“This is beyond bizarre,” she said. “This is stranger than fiction. Why on earth is this government doing absolutely nothing to really crack down on this hideous and obscene behaviour?”

The Guardian newspaper said Senator Hanson-Young said “high-rollers were being fast-tracked through the visa process, picking up prostitutes, getting access to drugs and going to a luxury hunting lodge to shoot wombats”.

At Channel 9 and The Age, reporters Nick McKenzie, Nick Toscano and Grace Tobin, led the reporting. They spoke of Mr Zhou’s links to Crown Casino.

“Crown relied on Zhou, who lives in a mansion in Melbourne’s Toorak, to circumvent Chinese laws that outlaw gambling promotion in China.

“These laws also ban the luring of groups of rich and powerful mainlanders to offshore casinos to punt,” the trio wrote in The Age.

“Zhou had also perfected this shadowy art, funnelling gamblers from China to Australia via his “Chinatown junket” to punt billions at Crown’s casinos.

“Zhou is no ordinary Crown partner,” The Age asserted. “He is, in fact, an international criminal fugitive, the subject of an Interpol red notice for financial crime that netted him tens of millions of dollars. He is supposed to be arrested immediately if he crosses a country’s border.

“When he rolled into Murrindindi in a luxury car in 2016, Tom Zhou had already made a fortune.

“He already bought his Toorak house in 2009 for $7.9 million and another around the corner for $15 million in 2013.

“Now a sprawling cattle property in Murrindindi had caught his eye. Even in this picturesque region, it stood out.

“A road from the property’s dilapidated farmhouse winds past cattle gates and up steep paddocks to a ridge that offers the property’s finest feature – a vista of cloud-cloaked mountain ranges. Zhou snapped it up for $7.5 million.

“Zhou’s plan upon purchase, according to the property’s managers, was to build a five-star hotel here for Chinese tourists.”

A meeting, attended by about 100 members of the Murrindindi public, was held about 18 months ago.

Residents asked questions, but felt they were given unsatisfactory answers. They voted against the resort proposal .

Local people, speaking on the basis of anonymity, said that concerns remained about ongoing hunting on the ‘Balaclava’ property.

Murrindindi residents have called for appropriate licensing, monitoring and investigation.

The Police, Department of Environment, Land, Water andPlanning; and Game Management Authority say they are monitoring.

Murrindindi Shire Council will consider a planning permit application for a resort, no longer to include a shooting facility, over coming months.

Shire CEO Craig Lloyd said: “Murrindindi Shire Council understands the community has concerns about the current use and proposed development of the property known as ‘Balaclava’ in Murrindindi.

“While the initial planning application for the development of this site included a shooting facility and residential hotel, the applicant has since made amendments to the application and it no longer includes a shooting facility.

“The application is likely to go on public exhibition in the near future – we will keep you updated on this.

“Council will not be making any decisions about the application until the community has had the opportunity to have their say.

“Separate to the planning application, we have also heard from community members who continue to be concerned about ongoing reports of shooting on the property.

“Council has been in discussion with the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) about this for some time. We condemn any illegal shooting of animals.

“DELWP and the Police are the agencies empowered to investigate and intervene on any allegations of illegal hunting and firearms matters.”