‘It’s like an oven’: Inside the bug-infested Cape York watch house police officers are calling out

The state of an insect-riddled, “open air” watch house has been raised at an inquest into the death of a western Cape York man while in police custody.

Police officers have called out the state of the Kowanyama watch house during a coronial inquest.

The state of an insect-riddled “open air” watch house has been raised at an inquest into the death of a western Cape York man while in police custody.

Mr George, whose first name is not being used at his family’s request, died at the Kowanyama watch house on November 9, 2022 after being arrested earlier in the day for contravening a domestic violence order.

Mr George died in police custody in Kowanyama on November 9, 2022. Picture: Supplied by the George family.

The coronial inquest, overseen by Queensland Coroner Terry Ryan, examined the events leading to Mr George’s death, police policy and procedures and the medical care provided to him.

But former officer in charge, Senior Sergeant David McCarthy, told the inquest multiple complaints were made by staff about the state of the watch house prior to Mr George’s death.

“On a clear day, it’s 45-50 degrees in there,” Senior Sergeant McCarthy, who’s spent almost two decades working in remote Indigenous communities, said.

“We had fans on just to cool the prisoners because it’s like an oven.

“The insects inside that watch house – it’s just a big steel box with metal grills.”

The state of the open-air Kowanyama watch house faced significant scrutiny during the coronial inquest.

The state of the watch house posed a risk to detainees and police officers, Senior Sergeant McCarthy said.

“There hasn’t been air conditioning for years,” he said.

“The rusty areas. There are big rust pieces that prisoners can snap off and self harm. It’s a miracle no-one did that.

“People would come and visit the prisoners and bring down a long, skinny stick. They would … somehow put a lit cigarette on there and shove it into the cells.”

Two gum trees that leaned over the watch house roof and tall grass behind prisoners’ cells were removed during Senior Sergeant McCarthy’s tenure in Kowanyama.

Kowanyama is a remote Indigenous community, located 600km north-west of Cairns. Picture: Supplied.

But other issues, including “faulty doors” posed daily challenges with prisoners spending up to four days inside the watch house, Senior Sergeant McCarthy said.

“There are no TVs in any of the cells. They just have to sit there staring at the walls,” he said.

“We all know for prisoners that if they can watch some TV … it improves their … time in the watch house.”

Constable Matthew Wenberg said his first impression of the watch house was that it was “very old”.

“The inner walls and external walls to the outside … it’s solid mesh,” he said.

“You can see through it and converse through it from inside the cell to the outside of the building.”

A QPS spokesperson declined to comment on the state of the Kowanyama watch house.

“As the matter is still before the Coroner it would be inappropriate to comment,” the spokesperson said.

Originally published as ‘It’s like an oven’: Inside the bug-infested Cape York watch house police officers are calling out