$10m bill for Melbourne’s youth jail riots
UPDATE: THE Premier is standing by his Youth Affairs Minister, saying she’s doing an “outstanding job”, as photos emerge of the $10m rampage bill left after rioting in Victoria’s main youth prison.
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UPDATE: THE State Opposition is calling for the Youth Affairs minister to be sacked after photos revealed the extent of destruction caused by rampaging teens in the state’s youth prison.
Dozens of images of two separate riots on May 6 and August 17, exclusively obtained by the Herald Sun, show large holes in ceilings and walls, smashed doors and windows, and office equipment destroyed by the thugs.
The photos were released as a Parkville Youth Justice Centre inmate pleaded guilty in a Children’s Court yesterday to a litany of crimes, including meth-fuelled joy rides, CBD bashings and throwing urine at emergency response staff inside the detention centre.
Youth justice sources claim the damage bill from the mayhem in Parkville and Malmsbury detention centres over the past two years will cost taxpayers up to $10 million.
A DHSS spokesman said he did not believe the figure was that high but did not have a damage cost estimate available.
Opposition families and children spokesperson Georgie Crozier said Youth Affairs Minister Jenny Mikakos should be sacked.
“There is no control,” she told 3AW.
“The minister has completely failed and needs to go.”
Premier Daniel Andrews this morning defended Ms Mikakos, saying she was doing “an outstanding job” in the face of “challenging issues”.
He said he would not apologise for locking up rioters in Barwon Prison after they “trashed” Parkville.
“I think hardworking families who pay their taxes, who do they right thing, they just like me are sick and tired of what we’ve been seeing happening in youth justice facilities,” Mr Andrews said.
Deputy Premier James Merlino also supported Ms Mikakos, saying she was doing a “fantastic job” in a tough portfolio.
The revelation of images of damage to the Parkville centre comes as one of the teens accused of leading police on a dangerous chase across the city, climaxing in an interception on the West Gate Bridge, was freed on bail.
A Herald Sun poll released on Monday revealed more than two-thirds of Victorians believe authorities are losing the battle against Apex gang thugs while nearly as many believe the government is too soft on youth crime.
The Children’s Court heard yesterday that a 17-year-old Parkville rioter with a lengthy and violent criminal history had also pulled a Malmsbury youth prison worker on to the ground and rained punches on his head during an unprovoked attack on March 1.
The boy and another inmate armed themselves at Parkville on May 6 with tennis rackets, then kicked open the staff locker room and pushed one of the lockers down a set of stairs, forcing staff to retreat.
They then broke off sections of wooden shelving and brandished them at staff.
One of the duo used the racket to smash open the window of the duty office, both climbing inside and demolishing a printer, CCTV monitor, filing cabinet, desk and chairs, among other objects.
They climbed up into the roof cavity, making holes in the ceilings and trying to coax other inmates to join their violent spree.
At 4pm they returned to the office, where they were confronted with emergency response officers holding shields and trying to negotiate with them. The teens threw a telephone, printer and glass at the officers before urinating in a bottle and throwing that.
Another rampage sparked on August 17 when an Apex-linked inmate, 17, became violent when he was refused a phone call, breaking through the door of his unit and allowing others to escape.
Two of the group then climbed up into the roof space, kicking in walls and smashing ceilings, causing other inmates to be evacuated. They climbed on to the roof of the centre, eventually surrendering late in the afternoon.
A police prosecutor told a Children’s Court yesterday the teen pleading guilty to the charges continued to run amok throughout the Oakview unit, destroying property throughout the afternoon.
“As a result of the incident the Oakview Unit was evacuated and closed down for several weeks until it was made safe and the repairs were conducted,” she said.
Parkville was thrown into chaos again last week when a gang of youths was involved in a tense standoff with guards after smashing up the centre.
Youth justice sources say they have been shocked at the escalation in the frequency and wreckage inflicted during the rampages, particularly in the past 12 months.
The Herald Sun has been told that one of those shifted to the Mill Park police station after the most recent spate of rioting had vandalised a cell there. The spite of the thugs became apparent during one of the incidents earlier this year when a teenager urinated on a desk in a staff office.
Some became involved after being told they would be bashed if they did not.
Sophisticated camera equipment and optic-fibre wiring will need to be replaced after the Parkville vandalism earlier this month. Vital fire equipment like sprinklers and smoke alarms was ruined.
The damage to ceilings at Parkville where children had crawled from unit to unit, risking injury amid electrical wiring and other hazards, was heartbreaking, a source said.
“It’s sheer luck there hasn’t been a death in custody,” the source said. “The best thing they could do is bulldoze it.”
A Children’s Court yesterday heard the teen involved in the incidents pleaded guilty to several car thefts in Gippsland this year, including a police pursuit in which he crashed into a Bairnsdale paddock and did burnouts until the engine caught fire and the car went into a dam.
Following one of the incidents he told police he stole a car because “I was off my guts” on methylamphetamine. Last month he also bashed passers-by in Flagstaff Gardens and Elizabeth St after stealing alcohol from a bottle shop.
After the matters were read the teenager’s lawyer didn’t seek to conceal the brutality of his crimes. “These are very serious matters, there’s no two ways about that,” he said.