New plan to tackle Ipswich youth crime spike revealed

Stolen cars and crash scenes — a shocking increase in youth crime gripping a city south of Brisbane has spurred on a mega justice transformation, as police hunt for an alleged joy rider who fled a crashed car just this weekend.

A spike in car thefts has gripped the Ipswich region with at least one car stolen each day, however it is the dangerous operation of the vehicles which has authorities fearing the worst.

Chaos erupted on a Brassall street when a stolen car careened out of control and smashed into a light pole on Sunday, August 14.

A police spokesman said three juveniles ran from the crash and thanks to the help of good Samaritans, two teenage boys were quickly placed under citizen’s arrest.

Soon after, police charged a 14-year-old boy with unlawful use and a 15-year-old boy with unlawful use, stealing, and receiving tainted property.

Police also denied their bail.

Ipswich police. Picture: Patrick Woods.

However detectives are actively looking for the third offender, and urge anyone who has CCTV or dashcam footage of the grey to contact police.

Less than 24 hours later police arrested an Ipswich woman, 24, and man, 25, after they were pulled from the wreck of a stolen Mazda CX-5 on the Gold Coast.

Queensland Police deputy commissioner Steve Gollschewski told the ABC juvenile offenders were putting themselves and members of the community at risk.

“We’re not just talking about the fact a car’s been stolen, you’re talking about the real risk of loss of life of members of the community and these young people,” he said.

“Our real focus is trying to understand, ‘what’s that really difficult group (known to police) doing now, and how can we have interventions and things that can be done to try and prevent that happening?’”

Minister for Youth Justice Leanne Linard announced a $1.4 million one-off grant program for projects in eight locations, including Ipswich, to help juvenile offenders turn their back on crime. Picture: Alix Sweeney

Minister for Youth Justice Leanne Linard announced a raft of holistic programs would be deployed in Ipswich and other local government areas to help police tackle the complex issue.

“We asked for proposals that could create lasting, meaningful changes by addressing the disadvantage typically experienced by teens in the youth justice system, and that’s exactly what we received,” she said.

The new programs plan to provide tailored support to juveniles upon their release from detention, guidance from elders and community leaders, and extra measures to get teens back at school or work.

As a part of the statewide project, Ipswich youth organisation, Fearless Towards Success will deliver an intensive six-month program to help young offenders reintegrate with the community.

Shadow Police Minister Dale Last said the Premier, Police Minister and Youth Justice Minister are downplaying the youth crime problem. Picture: Brendan Radke

According to Shadow Police Minister Dale Last, on average, 43 cars were stolen in Queensland every day during 2021.

“This proves the scale of the problem and the failings of the youth justice system,” he said.

“[The government has] downplayed the crime problem and refuse to implement consequences for actions.

“If breach of bail was an offence and a young offender broke any one of their bail conditions, the system would be able to intervene early.”