Pialba man charged after knife found at Maryborough shopping centre

A police operation of scanning hundreds of people across the region’s shopping centres, public transport and pubs has yielded a number of charges.

A Pialba man has been charged after allegedly being busted with a knife at a Maryborough shopping centre.

Police across the North Coast Region, from Bundaberg to Petrie, carried out more than 283 wandings in Operation Marshall from July 18-21.

Under Jacks Law, Operation Marshall involves high visibility patrols where police use handheld scanners to wand or detect illegal weapons in public places.

In the Wide Bay Burnett, 54 wandings were carried out at pubs and shopping centres.

A 29-year-old Pialba man was allegedly found with a knife at a shopping centre in Maryborough on July 19, and charged with possessing a knife in a public place.

Police across the North Coast Region, from Bundaberg to Petrie,carried out more than 283 wandings in Operation Marshall.

He will face Maryborough Magistrates Court on August 11.

The Sunshine Coast District conducted 100 wandings and, as of July 21, no weapons had been located.

The Moreton District conducted 129 wandings at various locations including shopping centres and public transport hubs.

A 15-year-old Caboolture boy was allegedly found with a knife at a public transport station in Morayfield on July 19, and has been dealt with under the provisions of the Youth Justice Act.

During the wanding operations in the Moreton district, police uncovered one drug offence and issued five traffic infringement notices.

Proactive wanding operations under Operation Marshall will continue until mid-August and the community can expect to see police scanning for weapons in public places, a police statement on the operation said.

A Pialba man has been charged after allegedly being busted with a knife at a Maryborough shopping centre.

North Coast Region Assistant Commissioner Glenn Morris said low or no results were good results.

“We have seen pleasing results so far with only two weapons found during 283 wandings,” Mr Morris said.

“Police will continue to be out in force conducting wanding operations with metal detectors in the coming weeks and I hope we see no further weapons.

“It is illegal to possess a knife or deadly weapon in a public place and we’re focused on enforcing this to ensure everyone’s safety.”

Originally published as Pialba man charged after knife found at Maryborough shopping centre