Police Taskforce Guardian’s first deployment to the Sunshine Coast
Police have charged more than 50 Sunshine Coast juveniles with a range of offences in a serious crackdown on youth crime in the region. See the video.
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Police have charged more than 50 Sunshine Coast juveniles with a range of offences in a serious crackdown on youth crime in the region.
In the Taskforce Guardian’s first deployment to the Sunshine Coast, police charged 54 juveniles with 77 offences.
Another 31 juveniles have also been diverted from the youth justice system.
The rapid response team brings together specialist police and youth justice workers, and were deployed to the Sunshine Coast from June 17 to 30, targeting high-risk youth offenders, and boosting community safety efforts.
During the deployment the taskforce engaged with young people over a range of serious offences including wilful damage, stealing, assault, possessing dangerous drugs, unlicensed driving, and enter premises and commit.
The taskforce utilised the expert knowledge of local frontline police to locate alleged young offenders, conduct bail compliance monitoring, and proactive patrols in high-risk locations, including high visibility foot patrols at public transport stations and shopping centres in Maroochydore and Caloundra.
Sunshine Coast Detective Inspector Chris Toohey said the deployment of Taskforce Guardian bolstered local efforts to ensure the people of the Sunshine Coast not only are safe, but feel safe.
“This has been a very successful deployment,” Detective Inspector Toohey said.
“The additional resources on our frontline allowed officers to focus on targeted activities to disrupt and deter youth offending.
“The power of pairing police with youth justice workers means we have a well-rounded holistic approach.
“Making arrests when necessary to protect the public, but also diverting young people from the youth justice system and working with key support services and local resources to engage them with relevant programs and services, focusing on health, education, disability services and First Nations initiatives.
“We welcome the extra boots on the ground and will continue high-visibility efforts to enhance community safety.”
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Originally published as Police Taskforce Guardian’s first deployment to the Sunshine Coast
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