Ji Wilfred Henry Campbell in court over Capricornia prison riot

More than 100 prisoners were involved in the riot that ended in the destruction of 139 beds and left many prison cells so damaged they could not be used. One of those prisoners was sentenced this week.

Smoke could be seen coming from the Capricornia Correctional Centre during a riot.

A prisoner involved in the 18-hour riot that caused $1.2 million in damages to the Capricornia Correctional Centre in 2021, has been sentenced almost three years later.

Ji Wilfred Henry Campbell, 24, pleaded guilty to one count of riot when he faced Maryborough District Court on Monday, April 29, 2024.

The court heard Campbell had been one of a number of prisoners who had been involved in the riot at Capricornia Correctional Centre in Rockhampton on October 21, 2021, during a period of “excessive” lockdowns.

More than 100 prisoners were involved in the riot that ended in the destruction of 139 beds and left many prison cells so damaged they could not be used.

Still scenes at the Capricornia Correctional Centre as the prison remained in lockdown for the clean up and investigation of the 18-hour long riot the day before.

The court heard Campbell attempted to disguise himself and helped take bins inside the unit which were then set on fire by other prisoners.

He was seen climbing a fence in the exercise yard, after which CCTV cameras appeared to be damaged, it heard.

Campbell escaped the secure unit and broke into a landscaping shed where he accessed petrol and garden tools.

He climbed onto the roof of a building where he threw rocks, cans and paint pots at officers.

The court was told Campbell used tools to cause property damage, smashing through roofs and trying to break a toilet.

He drove around on a powered lawn mower, was seen sniffing petrol on the roof of the gym and was seen using a garden tool to break another prisoner out of the detention unit.

Campbell jumped on fences, damaged sprinklers and discharged a fire extinguisher towards correctional officers.

Ultimately he surrendered after being involved “over many hours”, the court heard.

“You were involved from the beginning,” Judge Vicki Loury said.

Judge Loury said Campbell had been charged in relation to the offence in July 2022 and there had been a significant delay in the matter being finalised.

He had spent 657 days in pre-sentence custody in relation to the matter, while also serving an earlier sentence.

Police blocked the entrance to the Capricornia Correctional Centre and paramedics were on scene after the riot broke out.

Ms Loury said Campbell had a “prejudicial background” and had been exposed and subjected to domestic violence as a child.

He had been introduced to drugs and alcohol at the age of nine, and had started using meth as a teenager.

Campbell was the father of a four-year-old girl, the court heard.

He had undertaken courses while in prison and was working in the kitchen, which was a position of responsibility.

Judge Loury said the offending was particularly serious because there was a significant amount of damage done to the correctional centre.

“You would be a person who would only too well know how overcrowded prisons are and this riot caused 139 less beds being available to prisoners, which only served to add to the overcrowding in prisons,” she said.

“The risk to correctional officers when there’s a riot arises because of the very nature of mob violence and how it grows and how people start acting in ways that they wouldn’t otherwise act in and how more and more people become involved.”

Judge Loury said she understood the reasons the riot began, “because of excessive lockdowns”.

“But the reality is the prisons are so overcrowded that there are not enough correctional staff or space to be able to allow people out into the fresh air for as long as one would hope.

“And the prisons are overcrowded because there are too many people committing serious offences like you have done.”

Campbell was sentenced to six months in prison, to be served cumulatively on his current sentence.

He was given immediate parole eligibility.

“You’re a young indigenous man. You have a daughter,” Judge Loury said.

“You have a lot to offer our community. Our community needs to see young indigenous men leading your community and teaching our community about your culture.

“Your daughter deserves a father who is in her life, not one who is in prison, because if you remain in prison, keep committing offences and end up back in prison, then you’re going to lose the relationship you had with your daughter.”

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