Bulletproof vests and police jackets, caps and weapon holsters dumped in skip bin

Police bulletproof vests, jackets, caps and weapon holsters have been photographed stuffed in a skip bin behind a NSW police station, directly contravening safe disposal policies.

A police station in a large regional centre has been caught stuffing bulletproof vests into a commercial skip bin, along with police jackets, caps and weapon holsters.

The Sunday Telegraph has obtained evidence of police assets being thrown out in contravention of disposal policies, while providing a possible explanation for how the NSW Police force lost thousands of prohibited ballistic vests.

The photographs — leaked to Upper House MLC Rod Roberts by a police whistleblower — date from late 2022 to early 2023.

They show ballistic vests tossed into a skip bin at the back of a police station.

Mr Roberts said some of the vests still had their bulletproof plates inserted when they were thrown out, making them prohibited weapons that should not be in the hands of the public.

The commercial skip bin outside the police station was filled with police equipment. Picture Supplied

The former cop-turned-MP said the photos revealed a “very dangerous practice” was in place at the police station.

“These items could easily fall into the hands of criminals,” he said. “This causes potential to cause danger to citizens in NSW, if people were impersonating police officers with all the equipment that was available.”

Items in the bin included bulletproof vests. Picture Supplied

Old police uniforms were dumped in there too. Picture Supplied

Representing Police Minister Yasmin Catley, Tara Moriarty told parliament this week that she would “assume” police comply with proper rules and policies when disposing of police kit.

However, the photos obtained by Mr Roberts reveal at least one instance where procedures were seemingly breached.

The NSW Police “asset disposal policy”, published in 2021, specifically calls for NSW Police Force logos to be removed from clothing and equipment before it is disposed of.

“Neglecting to check may result in legal liability and embarrassment to the NSWPF,” it says.

The photos leaked to Mr Roberts show uniform items like jackets and caps with the logo still clearly in place.

Former cop-turned-MP Rod Roberts. Picture: Nikki Short

Mr Roberts said he received the photos from a whistleblower who had been “fobbed off” by their commander.

“A number of members of the police force attached to this particular station were extremely concerned about the practice,” he said.

Mr Roberts said the photos showed an “example of the lackadaisical approach of certain senior police towards disposal of items”.

Police are still scrambling to account for more than 2000 missing ballistic vests.

Deputy Commissioner Dave Hudson in August blamed the inconsistencies in part on the “mass destruction of expired vests” events without proper record-keeping.

Mr Hudson has launched another audit to account for the missing vests, which he said is “going to be done properly”.

That audit will not be completed until mid-2025.

In a statement, NSW Police said it was “difficult to prove” what happened to the assets from the images provided.

“It is unclear if the vests depicted have had the ballistic panels removed, which would mean the vest is no longer a ballistic vest under the legislation,” a spokeswoman said.

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