‘It’s not common practice’: Commander Martin Dole defends NT Police taking four days to inform public of child’s alleged rape
A NT Police Commander has defended his media unit’s four-day delay in informing the public about the alleged sexual assault of a child in Darwin last week
Police & Courts
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A NT Police Commander has defended his media unit’s four-day delay in informing the public about the alleged sexual assault of a child in Darwin last week.
Speaking with Katie Woolf on Mix 104.9 this morning, NT Police Commander Martin Dole said police hadn’t needed to inform the public of the incident straight away because the alleged offender was taken into custody just minutes after it occured.
“I think there’s a distinct difference between what’s in the public interest and what's just interesting to the public,” he said.
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“In this instance, this offender was apprehended within 15 minutes of the offence happening. There were no public safety concerns – the offender was in custody, we knew who he was, and the family as you can understand were distraught.
It’s not our policy … it’s not common practice to put this stuff out in the media instantly, for everyone else’s gratification.
“At the forefront of our thinking is the protection of the victim, their rights and how they’re travelling.”
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Cdr Dole also said it was “not common practice” for police to inform the public of “every detail of every sexual offence in the NT”.
He said doing so could risk NT Police breaching certain “legislative preventions” that applied to them.
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