Fight bigger than cops

Combating youth crime needs whole-of-community approach

POLICE alone cannot stop juvenile crooks stealing cars across the Gold Coast.

They say it will take a youth justice overhaul and whole-of-community effort to steer troubled kids away from crime.

Outraged residents have demanded immediate action from a 13-year-old boy crashing a stolen Range Rover in Ashmore this week. It follows years of offending by brazen juveniles stealing cars and posting their antics on social media.

The boy, still in hospital, faces a string of charges, including burglary and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.

“Catch and release. The young punk will do it again next week,” one woman wrote on Facebook.

Another said: “I’m thinking (an) electronic shock collar, but we don’t have those.”

However, Gold Coast police Acting Chief Superintendent Rhys Wildman said combating youth crime required a long-term societal approach.

“Youth crime is a very complex issue,” he said. “There’s some short-term solutions, but most are going to be longer term to get real change. “We’ve got a small reported increase in unlawful use of motor vehicles on the Gold Coast, but it is below the state average.” Act Supt Wildman said he was not only concerned about the safety of the general public and his officers, but wanted to prevent impulsive youngsters dying on the roadside. “For us, we’re talking a longer-term (strategy). We have operations working in the short-term addressing issues, but longer-term, the youth justice reforms are just one example of how these issues are being addressed. “We’re working with families, we’re working with individuals, we’re working with education, health, youth justice and all our partner agencies.”

Supt Wildman said most city car thefts could be attributed to recidivist offenders and breaking the cycle of crime was key.

“We’re getting results with targeting our individual offenders,” he said.

“We have multiple operations running all the time aimed at just that. At not only responding to, investigating and disrupting these activities, but preventing them from occurring in the first place.”

He pointed to the city’s Project Street CRED (Collaborate, Re-engage, Empower and Deter), which involves reaching out to at-risk and homeless youths.

“Our focus is very much on steering people away from the justice system to begin with.”

He said the community could help by securing properties and preventing the theft of keys, far and away the method most used by young crooks to steal modern cars.

“The vital element is supporting us in what we’re trying to achieve, from a community safety angle,” Act Supt Wildman said.

“It’s just being aware of trying to secure your cars, your house – most of these offenders are opportunistic in nature.

“Little things can make a huge impact at reducing reported crime.”

Mental health, drug use, family issues and many other factors also come into play when it comes to youth crime.

Act Supt Wildman also warned young offenders posting about their exploits: “Social media is a great tool for connecting people.

“The way the offenders look at it now is they get notoriety from posting on these social media platforms and we work with other agencies, and social media platforms themselves, around identifying these people,” he said.

“It provides a good evidentiary base when we go into the prosecution stage.”

Act Supt Wildman said reported youth crime had generally dropped “over many years” in Queensland, despite perception.

“We’ve just to keep working and address these issues at a local level.”

Act Supt Wildman said police tried not to worry too much about court outcomes, and focused on “providing the best brief of evidence, the best case to prosecute individuals”.