Up to 50 people without homes in Daly River after armed raid as police investigate gang link

The Assistant Police Commissioner said “surge resources” were enough to deal with issues in the community as efforts continue to repatriate up to 50 people whose homes were torched.

Police are investigating the role gang violence played in armed raids on Daly River, but there are no plans underway to grow the town’s permanent police force of three officers.

NT Police Assistant Commissioner Janelle Tonkin said “surge resources” had been deployed from other sectors after the violence erupted between Tuesday and Thursday last week.

The community of around 120 people was terrorised by armed band who set houses and cars on fire, and discharged weapons including shotguns and crossbows.

“As a result of having arrested six of the primary offenders for that offending, some of those resources have returned to their ordinary places of work,” Commissioner Tonkin said.

The arrested offenders included five men aged 18 to 40 and one teenager aged 17.

NT Police Assistant Commissioner Janelle Tonkin said up to 50 Daly River residents had been displaced by the armed raid last week. Picture: Fia Walsh

Fronting media, Commissioner Tonkin said five homes sustained “significant damage” due to arson, while up to 50 people are still displaced and have been relocated to temporary accommodation as repairs are carried out.

“We will continue to have resources providing support right throughout that Daly River region, from Adelaide River, from Peppimenarti and Wadeye, over the coming days as community rebuilds itself,” she said.

“As a result of the significant police resources we have surged to that region to provide support and reassurance, there have been fortunately no injuries to police and no damage to police property.”

A Daly River local who presented to one of the clinics with an arrow still in his side. Picture: Supplied

Five houses sustained “significant damage” due to arson. Picture: Supplied

Commissioner Tonkin said three permanent police officers were stationed in the town including one Aboriginal community liaison.

She said surge resources were sufficient to deal with issues when they arise and that “ordinarily, when the Daly community is calm, the ratio of police to the number of members in the community is appropriate”.

Daly River residents said the unrest was caused by a gang calling themselves the Jovi Warriors, which has up to 60 members.

Commissioner Tonkin said that police were pursuing this line of inquiry.

“It certainly something that we’re currently investigating, the offenders I believe are all known to each other,” she said.

“This group is well-known to police and a number of them have been brought into police custody and charged with offences previously.

“We will continue to work with that group of offenders and we will continue to work with community to ensure the issues that are driving this community violence can be brought to a head.”

First responders removed an arrow from a man’s abdomen and shotgun pellets from other victims, but the injuries were “non-life threatening”.

Speaking to the NT News, one now homeless Daly River resident who did not wish to be named called for a dedicated taskforce to “get rid of the troublemakers”.

The accused offenders will face the Darwin Local Court on Tuesday.