African gang crisis: Interstate thugs behind wild brawls
A HARDCORE group of interstate thugs has emerged as key players in Melbourne’s African gang violence — and some are still in town.
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A HARDCORE group of interstate thugs has emerged as key players in Melbourne’s African gang violence — and some are still in town.
The Sunday Herald Sun can reveal leaked police intelligence has traced wild brawls on the St Kilda foreshore and a trashed Werribee house party back to a group of Sydney basketballers of South Sudanese descent.
A large contingent came to Melbourne for a tournament — sponsored by Victoria Police.
But police now believe a number of the thugs stayed on after the tournament for the summer holidays and continued to cause trouble.
The interstate gang menace emerges as the state government, increasingly frustrated with some in the judiciary’s lenient sentences, moves to make jail time the only sentence option for more violent offences.
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The change will scrap community corrections orders which allow offenders to avoid jail for car jackings, home invasions and serious assaults.
It would target the criminal activity of Apex and Menace to Society, and is likely to see more gang members jailed.
Premier Daniel Andrews today said he had not ruled out making further changes.
“There are now ten serious offences for which there is now a mandatory jail term, there was no such mandatory jail term under our predecessors,” he said.
“Our predecessors had a very different approach to these things in government. Let’s not worry about their promises and their words now.
“They had a very different approach, a very soft approach when it came to the operation of community corrections orders.
“The Attorney-General and I had a very productive meeting on Friday with the Chief Commissioner, as I’ve always said, if the Chief Commissioner wants extra resources, he gets them.
“If he wants extra powers, he gets them because this is a government which supports Victoria Police 110 per cent to fight crime and keep the community safe.
“We’re certainly not ruling out making further changes.”
The legislation, to be introduced early in the year, would likely force judges to issue jail time unless exceptional circumstances can be proven.
Legislation was passed last March banning CCOs for 10 of the most serious crimes, including murder and rape.
The change is a bid to stop opposition attacks that the government is soft on crime.
As authorities look for ways to tackle the gang scourge, some in government are looking into whether terror deradicalisation programs could be adapted for street gangs.
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Learnings used to spot early signs of radicalisation and violent extremism are expected to help the African community leaders wipe the problem out.
A government source said various deradicalisation programs could be adapted to stop teens joining street gangs.
“We think a lot of these programs may have a broader application,” the source said.
The state government also said last week it was willing to fund its part of a national criminal intelligence system.
Federal Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is considering the criminal intelligence system after a two-year trial, but there is yet to be an announcement from Canberra.
Premier Daniel Andrews urged Mr Dutton to fund the database.
“He’d (Dutton) do better funding the national database that he’s refusing to fund,” Premier Andrews said.
“When we get dozens or more young kids playing up from Sydney, we’ve got a database that we can know all we need to know, what their history is, what their status is.
“Action is always better than just shooting your mouth off. I call upon the Federal government to fund that national database because I think it’s critically important to keeping us safe, to fighting crime.
“Victoria Police tell me they need this, that’s what Mr Dutton should be focused on rather than providing an endless ill-informed commentary which I don’t think achieves very much.”
Victorian Acting Police Minister Martin Pakula said the database would help every state get the information it needed to track criminals.
“Instead of rubbishing Victoria on Sydney radio, Peter Dutton should be working with us,” he said.
“We stand ready to fund our share — it’s time Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Peter Dutton did the same.”
