Youth crime crisis: Commissioner announces new social media team

Dozens of Instagram accounts in southeast Queensland host footage of teen offenders flaunting the law and tormenting their victims. But a new push from police may have them shut down for good.

Social media is both a blessing and a curse for police as they work to halt the escalation in youth crime.

On one hand, offenders posting videos of their offences online gives police visual evidence in their investigations.

But on the other hand, the trend amplifies the community’s fear of the unchecked crime.

Worst of all, offenders gain notoriety and can connect with like-minded individuals across the country, forming an anti-social peer group that is hard to bust open.

In response, Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll announced the QPS will employ a team of 25 social media experts.

Some of these staff members will be embedded within the Crime and Intelligence Command.

“This is not just about getting evidence from social media, but also to make sure police are proactive about putting information into social media,” she said.

It is hoped they will take on both the criminals and the social media giants who host the videos.

“It is absolutely abhorrent,” Mr Carroll said.

“I find it hard to understand that someone thinks this is a good thing to do, to record someone’s misery.

“There is something serious wrong if you think that is something to put on social media.”

The new social media team will help investigators gather evidence and work with the Federal Government’s E-Safety Commission to have offensive material taken down.

“The E-Safety Commission has been strong on this in the past, but it is difficult,” she said.

“The videos have to be quite extreme for the social media companies to take action.

“I don’t know what the future holds in that space but we really do need to keep trying because it is one of the things that drives (offenders) behaviour.”

The move signals the largest investment into social media monitoring by any of Australia’s police services.

It also comes off the back of Federal Member for Groom, Garth Hamilton, announcing he would introduce a private member’s bill to strengthen the E-Safety Commission’s power when parliament resumes for 2023.

Ms Carroll said social media was a difficult space to work in.

“Anything we do needs to be based on good research when you are dealing with tech giants and powerful private industries,” she said.