Australian Federal Police brought in to clear backlog of 10,000 DNA cases

There are fears the catastrophic failings of DNA testing are leaving victims living in fear and the innocent behind bars amid an extraordinary backlog of 10,000 cases.

• Crime expert: Delays keep serial offenders on streets

The Australian Federal Police have been brought in to help the state deal with a DNA testing backlog as it can be revealed there are upwards of 10,000 cases awaiting testing.

It comes six months after a Commission of Inquiry into Forensic DNA Testing in Queensland revealed catastrophic failings in the state’s DNA testing program.

The major backlog was revealed by Deputy Chief Magistrate Anthony Gett on Monday during a mention of a case involving an alleged violent brawl of up to 40 people.

The case – involving a dispute between warring factions at Brisbane’s Sikh Temple – has been before the courts since September 2021.

A request for disclosure of evidence made in December was still outstanding including three items that needed to be retested for DNA with no time estimate on when that would be completed.

Girum Mekonnen, 19, was murdered. Picture: Facebook

“There’s 10,000 cases in backlog for DNA testing, that’s what’s being indicated to myself and others,” Mr Gett said in court.

“If DNA testing has to be redone, that’s an unknown factor at this stage.”

Queensland Health officials confirmed on Monday the AFP was now helping with DNA in bone samples.

It’s understood two of three staff issued with show-cause notices no longer work for Queensland Health.

One of the issues examined by the inquiry was the decision by the Queensland Health run DNA-testing lab to stop testing DNA samples below a certain threshold and instead incorrectly reporting them to the police and courts as being DNA insufficient.

As a result, more than 1800 false witness statements relating to DNA testing across 1260 cases had to be corrected.

Potts Lawyers director Bill Potts said this was one of the causes of the delay that he described as “endemic”.

“It’s something where there’s not a quick solution, I’m afraid,” he said.

“It is trite to say that we need more scientists; we need better equipment, and we need a proper investment by the government to ensure that all of those things are done not just quickly, but properly.

Some of the injuries caused during a brawl involving members of the Brisbane Sikh Temple. Picture: Supplied

“The simple truth is that justice delayed means more problems with people’s memory sometimes their availability, it means time spent in custody … and it means victims of crime, who are often very voiceless in the whole process, having uncertainty and fear in their lives for lengthy periods of time.”

Queensland Health revealed it was halfway through the work to correct cases where there had been false witness statements because of DNA issues.

“Approximately 630 of the 1260 cases where witness statements included a reference to DNA samples having ‘DNA insufficient for further processing’ or ‘No DNA detected’ have now had statements reissued,” a spokesman confirmed.

The spokesman also confirmed work was “continuing on establishing Forensic Science Queensland as an independent administrative division in the Department of Justice and Attorney-General in 2024”.

Another high-profile matter that had been delayed involves the case against 11 men charged with the September 2020 murder of 19-year-old Girum Mekonnen at Zillmere.

One of the men charged with the murder of 19-year-old Girum Mekonnen is taken to the Brisbane Watchhouse in 2020. Picture: NewsWire/John Gass

Retesting needed on up to 300 DNA samples saw the already delayed committal proceeding adjourned last October until later this month.

The matter has been before the court since 2020 and now may not head to trial until 2025.

Several lawyers spoken to by the Courier Mail have shared their frustration with the delays.

“We are becoming increasingly frustrated at wait times for retesting of DNA samples, especially in circumstances where a particular client may be remanded in custody awaiting trial,” principal of Beavon Lawyers, Brendan Beavon said.

“This should be a matter of public concern, especially where a person is ultimately found not guilty by 12 members of the community.”

The $6m DNA inquiry found poor case management over years had resulted in a significant number of criminal investigations in which evidence may have been missed.

“Those failures have created a real risk of miscarriage of justice in the criminal justice system,” the report stated.

Family and friends linked to the case of 13 men who are charged with the murder of 19-year-old Girum Mekonnen during a brawl in September 2020 leave Brisbane Magistrates Court in February 2022. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Dan Peled

The scathing report by retired Supreme Court justice Walter Sofronoff KC, handed down in mid-December, found serious problems had existed within the laboratory for many years, some of them amounting to “grave maladministration involving dishonesty”.

He called for urgent changes to the laboratory, including a need for a significant injection of funding, sweeping changes to bring procedures into line with best practices, new leadership and an organisational restructure.

The organisational structure involved ultimately housing the forensic science institute under the responsibility of the Attorney-General rather than health.

The state government announced $95m in funding within days to put toward immediate and long-term reform and affirmed its commitment to the 123 recommendations made by the inquiry.

This included the establishment of Forensic Science Queensland (FSQ), helmed by interim chief executive and leading DNA expert Professor Linzi Wilson-Wilde, and an independent board from January 2023.

Commissioner Walter Sofronoff KC. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

From the $95m funding pot, $10m over four years was for victim support services to meet any increased demand for trauma counselling, and $3.8m was for the Director of Public Prosecutions to “assess witness statements and manage cases in a timely manner”.

Liberal National Party leader David Crisafulli has claimed the Opposition was approached by a rape victim who said she was yet to be contacted by the government as part of the review into the DNA bungle.

The Opposition told reporters it was contacted by a whistleblower who was still waiting to be included in the process to re-test evidence from murder and sexual assault cases.

“Months down the track after putting themselves through one of the most harrowing experiences someone can go through to not even be contacted shows everything you need to know about a process that is running off the rails,” Mr Crisafulli said.

“They’re waiting for clarification of where the matter is and, without going into the specifics of the case I’m referring to, it involves a young woman who is alleged to have been the victim of rape.”