Breath test rort worsens
Bogus police reporting could be as high as one million cases
THE POLICE bogus breathtest rort could run as high as one million falsified cases.
News Corp has been told the quarter of a million faked tests revealed last week is only a fraction of the total number of cases in doubt.
Officers routinely tested themselves, instead of motorists, to meet expecta- tions over a five-year period.
Victoria Police last week admitted 258,000 breath tests had been fudged by police.
But this number relates to cases where it was certain — because of a short gap between samples — that the tests were not taken.
The number of cases under suspicion could run four times higher than that.
The force was able to make no correlation between the number of tests taken and its distribution of single-use straws, which are attached to breathalysers.
Police will look at tighter auditing of the number of straws it uses so that matches the number of tests carried out.
The force is running a major inquiry into the scandal, overseen by the independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission.
The Transport Accident Commission has suspended up to $4 million in funding to the force in the aftermath of the revelations.
It is believed the sham was only uncovered after a whistleblower came forward.
Victoria Police insiders have criticised the force for not detecting the problem itself.
They say data which could have exposed the problem had been available for years but never examined.
Road safety sources say pressure to meet ever-inflating statewide breath-test targets was a key reason for officers cutting corners.
“They’ve been intoxicated by these targets,” one officer said.
Other police jurisdictions, most notably Ireland, have been hit by scandals involving officers faking breath-tests.
In that country, 1.9 million tests were faked in the space of eight months.
In a statement released yes- terday, Victoria Police said: “Victoria Police has spent over seven months analysing this data and can confidently confirm 258,463 PBTs were falsified.
“Victoria Police is determined to get to the bottom of this issue and strengthen procedures which is why we have appointed a distinguished former Chief Commissioner to oversee an investigation so we can learn from it and prevent a recurrence.”