Police have charged 60 teenagers with 190 offences as part of an operation by Taskforce Guardian, a dedicated team of police and youth justice workers targeting recidivist juvenile property offenders across the state.
Taskforce Guardian worked in conjunction with local specialist and general duties officers in Rockhampton this week (October 9 to 17) as part of ongoing efforts to help foster community safety.
The borderless nature of Taskforce Guardian allows the team to deploy at any time, where support is needed most across our state.
The establishment of the new rapid response arm works collaboratively with Youth Justice to target youth crime and provide immediate support to local police to target and disrupt youth offending.
Over the past week, officers across Rockhampton conducted hundreds of engagements including street checks, bail checks, breaches of bail and warrants.
In that time, Taskforce Guardian officers, in conjunction with local police, charged 60 youths on a total of 190 charges including burglary, break, enter stealing and more.
Taskforce Guardian is a surge response team bringing together detectives and expert youth justice workers, deployed to assist local police efforts in targeting and disrupting the high-end offenders in hotspot locations.
Taskforce Guardian also works with key support services and local resources to engage at-risk youth with relevant programs, focusing on health, education, disability services and First Nations initiatives.
Acting Detective Inspector Joe Nixon from the State Flying Squad and Taskforce Guardian said the operation had assisted Rockhampton Police with both crime reduction and crime prevention.
“Taskforce Guardian along with local police saturated various areas that youths were known to frequent which has helped disrupt youth offending and anti-social behaviour,” Detective Inspector Nixon said.
“Our officers have also used the opportunity as a platform to engage with young people in an effort to foster a positive rapport on the road to crime prevention while providing appropriate support services that focus on health and education of our young people at risk.”
If you have information for police, contact Policelink by providing information using the online suspicious activity form 24hrs per day at www.police.qld.gov.au/reporting.
Report crime information anonymously via Crime Stoppers. Call 1800 333 000 or report online at www.crimestoppersqld.com.au.
