FROM sex scandals and toxic culture claims, to escapees and officer assaults, Townsville Correctional Centre has been a hub of violence and controversy for many years.
Here is 13 incidents that have rocked the prison in the past few years.
STAFF PROTEST OVER SAFETY
April 18, 2018:Staff at the men’s and women’s prisons go on strike demanding body vests, body cameras and tear gas after tools went missing from a workshop over the weekend.
Together Union Townsville organiser Norm Jacobsen said staff walked off the job at 6.30am for a safety meeting, sending the prisons into lockdown.
PRISONER ESCAPES FROM FARM
October 21, 2018: Geoffrey John Campbell, 39, was on the run for almost two weeks after escaping from a Townsville correctional centre facility.
Campbell was serving a nine-month sentence at the Townsville Correctional Centre Farm for possessing explosive and weapons.
PRISONERS ON ROOF OF CORRECTIONAL CENTRE
November 12, 2018: The prison went into lockdown after two male inmates climbed onto a roof at the facility.
After a seven-hour standoff with Queensland Corrective Services officers, the second prisoner voluntarily came down after the first came down after four hours.
JAIL LOCKED DOWN AFTER STAFF ATTACK
March 29, 2019:The correctional centre was placed in lockdown as officers searched for weapons following a possible needle attack on staff the day prior.
In a statement, Queensland Corrective Services said officers were taken to Townsville Hospital as a precaution after they received scratches after a prisoner appeared to have a needle secreted away in his clothing.
UNDERGROUND DRUG TRADE RIFE
June 19, 2019:The safety of Townsville’s prisons is being compromised by an underground drug trade, according to the union representing Queensland Corrective Services staff.
Data shows from 2018 up to March this year, there were 10 incidents where substances had been located within a correctional facility. In the same time period, 10 officers were seriously assaulted, with another 13 attacked.
PRISON SEX SCANDAL
June 27, 2019: A prison guard is under investigation amid allegations he had sex with an inmate’s wife on or near the grounds of the Townsville Correctional Centre Farm.
Sources have told the Bulletin a USB stick was seized from the cell of the woman’s husband at the low-security facility at Stuart.
CCTV footage of the corrections officer and the prisoner’s wife is believed to have been found on the storage device. The device was found by prison farm staff who seized the prohibited item.
OFFICERS WALK OUT
October 22, 2019: Prison officers walked off the job after two staff members were attacked by prisoners.
The officers were ambushed by four prisoners in an exercise yard in a secure unit after the staff spotted a prisoner smoking.
One of the staff members was left with 13 staples in his head.
STOOD DOWN
January, 2020:A high-ranking executive at the beleaguered Townsville Correctional Centre was suspended after being accused of inappropriately misusing his position.
General manager Peter Hall was stood down earlier this year amid an ethical standards investigation.
It is understood this arose from allegations of “inappropriate misuse of his position and departmental resources”.
MAN FOUND DEAD
April 10, 2020:A man was found dead in his prison cell earlier this year.
He was found about 7.15am, with reports indicating he suffered a heart attack in the village at the prison.
PRISONERS GASSED FOR FLASHING GUARDS
April 24, 2020: A group of female prisoners were gassed on Easter Sunday this year, after they began rioting over being reprimanded for flashing their breasts.
Sources said the riot started after three prisoners received breach paperwork after exposing their breasts to contract cleaners.
The team were forced to use gas on four women after they began destroying parts of a secure unit.
GUARD SMUGGLES DRUGS
May 10, 2020:A prison officer was suspended over allegations he brought drugs into the prison complex.
Sources said general manager Acting Chief Superintendent Louise Kneeshaw sent an email to staff across the complex, saying the officer had been stood down pending an investigation.
OFFICER ASSAULTED
July 26, 2020:A prison officer needed stitches after jamming his fingers in the door of a cell while being assaulted by an inmate.
The officer suffered facial bruising from being punched in the face by the prisoner, but accidentally caught his fingers in the cell door when colleagues arrived to help.
INMATE BITES OFFICER
September 10, 2020:A prison officer was taken to hospital after he was bitten by a prisoner while conducting a welfare check.
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43 of us are guilty of this shameful driving act each day
It is one of the most dangerous things you can do yet 43 Queenslanders are being caught each day.
Staff shortages linked to lighter juvenile sentences
Juvenile offenders being locked in their rooms for days on end are being considered as “unusual and harsh” conditions resulting in reduced sentences in Queensland Courts.