CRIMS CUT AND RUN

GPS TRACKERS ‘ POINTLESS’

ONE in eight parolees in Townsville have been charged for cutting off their flimsy GPS trackers.

Police prosecutor Darryn Casson spoke out against the “rubber type band” devices after a man was sentenced to 12 months jail for removing his GPS tracker and driving unlicensed. “The cost of replacement is only $ 33,” he said.

COURT-ISSUED tracking bracelets have come under scrutiny with crims able to cut off the devices.

One in eight parolees in Townsville, forced to wear the ankle bracelets since the tracking device program was introduced last June, have been charged for cutting off the devices.

The trackers are often placed on high- risk offenders but can be easily removed.

Last week, Gussippie Anthony Rupena was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment after he cut off his tracker and sped off from police who were trying to stop him while he was driving unlicensed.

During Rupena’s court proceedings, police prosecutor Darryn Casson was critical of the devices.

“As I understand it they are only a rubber- type band, they are not too difficult to remove,” Mr Casson said.

“The cost of the replace- ment is only $ 33 which might indicate that maybe corrections need to improve the quality of their monitoring bracelets.”

Sensors built into the devices detect when they have been damaged, and automatic notifications are sent to parole authorities.

A Queensland Corrective Services spokeswoman said GPS tracker straps were considered consumable items, and were replaced regularly.

LNP police spokesman Trevor Watts said the GPS tracking issue was a reflection of an incompetent government.

“If an offender can easily remove a GPS tracker, the community is left exposed and at risk,” Mr Watts said.

“GPS trackers should go on once and stay on.

“You have to wonder what the point of them is, if offenders can cut them loose.”

Townsville MP Scott Stewart said the bracelets provided a chance for offenders to prove themselves and authorities pounced quickly when people abused that trust.

“We are trying to rehabilitate people to stop committing crimes,” Mr Stewart said.

“You give them the opportunity to prove themselves … if they cut it off, the consequences become more severe.

“The moment the tracker gets removed, all bets are off.

“At the moment we have seven out of eight doing the right thing, so I think you have to look at the whole picture, not just the bad few.”

There are currently 11 people on parole in the Townsville community fitted with GPS tracking devices.

Kasie Rice became Townsville’s most wanted man after he allegedly cut off his GPS tracker in June and went on a crime spree.

A police officer lost the tips of two of his fingers during Rice’s dramatic arrest.

Convicted thief Jack Noel Spark cut his ankle bracelet off in November last year because he claimed it made him feel like a paedophile.

AS I UNDERSTAND IT THEY ARE ONLY A RUBBER-TYPE BAND, THEY ARE NOT TOO DIFFICULT TO REMOVE. DARRYN CASSON