Deputy Chief Minister Gerard Maley on arrests and police directives

The government has shut down claims police officers are being ordered to overlook non-urgent crimes, with Deputy Chief Minister Gerard Maley saying authorities have been instructed to “arrest as many” offenders necessary.

Deputy Chief Minister Gerard Maley says the government has not directed police to overlook non-urgent arrests. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Government officials have shut down claims police officers are being ordered to overlook non-urgent crimes, with Deputy Chief Minister Gerard Maley saying authorities have been instructed to “arrest as many” offenders necessary.

The response comes after NT Police Association president Nathan Finn claimed “frustration” was brewing among police and correction officers regarding the handling of offenders.

Speaking on Katie Woolfe’s radio program this week, Mr Finn was asked if officers had been advised by their superiors to avoid non-essential arrests.

“That’s being advised by the members to the members across the radio communication system with police,” Mr Finn said.

“I witnessed that first hand in the watch-house last week when I was attended out there and we had record numbers of prisoners again in the watch house.

“We didn’t know where to go or what to do with them (so) we had to turn away arrests at that time as well, and that’s causing frustration between our own members and also between the correctional staff as well.”

The response comes after NTPA president Nathan Finn (pictured) said officers “turn away” arrests due to large prisoner numbers. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

On Wednesday, Mr Maley was asked if the CLP had instructed police officers to overlook minor offending.

Mr Maley said there was “no official direction” from the government to let offenders off the hook.

“What we say is if someone out there has done an offence, arrest them,” he said.

“We want to make sure that the community is safe (and) that’s our clear mandate.”

Despite the Territory’s prison numbers continuing to mount, Mr Maley said the government encouraged police to crack down on criminals.

“What we say is if the community is in risk or in danger, we want you to keep the community safe,” he said.

“That includes arresting people - arrest as many as you need to keep the community safe.”

NT Police Commander Danny Bacon says instruction passed onto officers is to “notify the watch commander” in order to pre-empt a prisoner handover. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

NT Police commander Danny Bacon also refuted such a directive had been issued.

“An instruction has not gone out of that nature,” he told Katie Woolfe’s listeners.

“What instruction has gone out over the radio was if people arrest an individual, is to notify the watch commander on the radio.

“And that was so that the watch commander can plan in conjunction with the custody team in regards to how best to receive that prisoner within the watch-house environment, because given the increased custody we have, particularly at Palmerston, in regards to managing them within that custody environment, we need to make sure we have cells ready to process them.”

It is not the first time this month the Territory Government have been questioned on whether they have been issuing top-down directives on operational matters.

Last week, Lingiari MP Marion Scrymgour said she was concerned there was a lack of transparency in relation to crime, claiming public servants had been strong armed into withholding information from the public.

The CLP also denied such claims.