FINDINGS OF THE AUDITOR GENERAL’S REPORT

THE Auditor General’s report into the reliability of data from the criminal justice system found police “altered” statistics.

“Gold Coast staff reported an unhealthy focus on achieving performance targets, rather than data quality, has contributed to these results,” the report read. It said officers had changed the status of crime reports from “unsolved” to “unfounded”. Officers employed methods aimed at having complaints withdrawn, including: • Soliciting victims to withdraw complaints. • Sending victims letters requiring them to respond within seven days or police will “presume” the victim wants no further action. • Adopting a three strikes policy, where if they cannot contact victims after three attempts, the complaint becomes ‘withdrawn’.