Crime in Queensland

On-going political issue

Graffiti on a Queensland Rail train, 2017

Crime in Queensland is an on-going political issue. Queensland Police is responsible for providing policing services to Queensland, Australia. Crime statistics for the state are provided on their website.[1] Official records show that reported offences against property and people has declined over the past 20 years to 2020.[2] The state has criminal codes for hooning,[3] graffiti,[4] sharing intimate images without consent[5] and fare evasion.[6] Wage theft became a crime in 2020.[7] The minimum age of criminal responsibility in Queensland is 10 years old.

The long-term trend is for a decrease in crime in Queensland across all categories.[8] Exceptions include rape, assault and shoplifting[9] which have increased. The rate of youth offending is falling.[8] By age, the largest group of criminals was the 20-24 cohort.[8]

The Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) was created to combat and reduce the incidence of major crime and to reduce the incidence of misconduct in the Queensland public sector. Complaints about the police are rarely investigated by the CCC which passes police matters back to the service for internal review.[10]

Community crime Facebook groups have grown in number and influence, becoming de facto lobby organisations.[11] Police have raised concerns about the rise of vigilantism stemming from comments online.[11]

## History

[edit]

In July 1987, the Fitzgerald Inquiry began formal hearings. The judicial inquiry investigated possible illegal activities and police misconduct. Fitzgerald's report was submitted on 3 July 1989. Queensland Police Commissioner Terry Lewis was charged with corruption and a number of politicians were charged with crimes. The Fitzgerald Inquiry lead to the establishment of Queensland's first anti-corruption body, the Criminal Justice Commission.

Crime Stoppers Queensland was established in 1989.[12]

In August 2013, the Queensland Police Service launched an online crime map to provide crime data to the public.[13] In October 2013, the Newman government led an unprecedented crackdown on outlaw motorcycle clubs.[14]

In March 2023, Queensland police were given a substantial rise in powers. Legislation passed that allows Queensland police to use hand-held metal detectors to search people without reasonable suspicion in a crackdown on knife crime.[15] In May 2023, an anti-crime rally was held in Rockhampton.[16] After the rally a group of about 60 people marched on the homes of alleged offenders.

In May 2025, the Queensland government made coercive control a criminal offense.[17]

## Illicit drugs

[edit]

Small scale drug possession laws were changed in 2023 with the introduction of a three-strike system that offers a caution to a first-timer, and diversion and assessment programs for anyone busted two or three times.[18] In the same year, mobile and fixed site pill testing was introduced in an attempt to curb the harmful effects of illicit drugs.[19] Queensland’s peak medical bodies welcomed the move towards a health-based approach to drug use.[20] The changes were made to save police time and to prevent further harm to small-time users.[21]

The sale and distribution of illicit drugs is the most pervasive form of organised crime activity in Queensland.[22] The largest bust of heroin in Queensland occurred in March 2023.[23] 336 kilograms of heroin was sent in a shipment from Malaysia.[23] In 2023, one of the largest meth labs in Australia was discovered in three storage units at Rothwell.[24] The industrial scale of the equipment and the amount of precursor chemicals found indicated an organised crime syndicate was behind the lab.[24]

## Youth crime

[edit]

Queensland has adopted a “tough on crime” approach to youth crime. Save the Children Australia claims a "child’s rights approach”, which would be more effective and humane.[25]

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children represented 60% of the number of children in detention.[26] Queensland has the highest youth recidivist rate of any state or territory.[27] The state has three youth detention centres with a capacity to hold 306 children aged 10 to 18.[28] Amnesty International Australia describes the current youth detention situation as a human rights crisis.[29] Police watch houses are used to hold youth as an interim measure while they await court appearances or transfer to youth detention.[29] To alleviate pressure on watch house use a dedicated remand centre for young offenders is being built at Wacol.[30]

Youth crime reforms were introduced in April 2021.[26] These included new laws allowing teen offenders to be fitted with GPS trackers and the denial of the presumption of bail if caught committing serious offences while on bail.[31]

Further youth justice laws were passed in early 2023.[32] Breach of bail is now a crime for children. High-visibility police patrols and a trial of engine immobilisers in three regional cities were part of the reforms.[32] Changes were made to youth crime laws for the second time in 2023, this time requiring suspension of the state's Human Rights Act.[33] They permitted the locking up of children in adult watch house for indefinite periods of time.[33]

## Brisbane

[edit]

### Crime statistics

[edit]

Officers of the Queensland Police Service in Brisbane, 2018

The suburbs of Dunwich, Dutton Park, Moorooka, Acacia Ridge and Inala reported the most break-ins across Brisbane in the 10 years to 2019.[34] Although Underwood and surrounds were identified as the state’s home break-in hot spot in 2012.[35] Fortitude Valley is a hot spot for violent assaults.[36] Fortitude Valley has the vast majority of illicit drug detections for the city.[37] Cannabis and amphetamine type substances are the most commonly used drugs in Brisbane.[37] Across the Brisbane metropolitan area there was an average of about 53 drug offences each day in 2018.[38]

Inala had the highest number of car thefts in the year up to August 2023.[39]

Number of total offenses in Queensland since 2012:[40]

2012: 437,863

2013: 435,599

2014: 440,986

2015: 460,113

2016: 503,278

2017: 493,230

2018: 516,899

2019: 543,605

2020: 501,134

2021: 505,306

2022: 561,629

2023: 606,274

2024: 624,569

2025: 255,683 (June 27)

### Public transport

[edit]

#### Trains and railway stations

[edit]

Some railway stations have issues with youth gangs and individuals harassing passengers and police officers.[41]

Other stations with just between four and six assaults in the same period[when?] were South Brisbane, Cannon Hill, Beenleigh, Central, Strathpine and Caboolture. Burpengary, Bald Hills and Indooroopilly train stations were the only on the Citytrain network to have a grievous assault - defined as potentially causing permanent injury or disability.[42] Queensland Police Operations Support Command said in 2008 that the network is safe and that the rate of crime is not worse than that in the community in general, explaining that the perception it was higher was due to the close confines of being in a passenger train.[42] The network operator, Queensland Rail, implemented various security initiatives over more than a decade that includes closed-circuit television at stations and within trains, and patrols over the network and on-board services by Revenue Protection Officers, uniformed and plain-clothed police officers of the network's own squad, and security guards, to deter crime and assist with identifying offenders.[43]

#### Buses

[edit]

Attacks against bus drivers are uncommon but not unheard of in Brisbane. In late 2019, Translink, the city's bus network operator, launched a bus driver safety campaign in partnership with the Queensland Government.[44] The campaign, See It From Their Side, funds a number of public awareness campaigns (television, radio, and print), the installation of physical safety measures, additional Senior Network Officers (transport fare and safety enforcement officers), and further policy development.[45]

### Youth gangs

[edit]

Youth gangs have played a large part in the amount of crime occurring within various problem areas of Brisbane. Such violence prompted the Queensland Commissioner to reactivate a Youth Gang Task-force in 2008.[46]

## Other crime

[edit]

In October 2021, a wanted man tried to enter Queensland from New South Wales in a suitcase in the back of a truck. He was a drug smuggler and was not meant to leave his house. Police checked the vehicle because of the COVID-19 and were surprised when there was a knock on the wall.[47]

Operation Ironside resulted in the nation's biggest organised crime bust in June 2021.[48] In Queensland, 38 people were arrested on more than 150 charges.[48] Six major criminal syndicates were dismantled.[48]

Copper wire theft is a growing trend in South East Queensland with sporting clubs and construction sites targeted.[49]

In June 2023, it was reported that an average of 55 car thefts occur across Queensland every day.[50] Queensland is the state or territory where you are most likely to get your car stolen.[51]

By 2021, the Queensland Police Service was responding to an average of more than 400 cases of domestic violence every day.[52]

In April 2024, a Brisbane man was charged after being found to be the Australian leader of a transnational organised crime organisation that was responsible for smuggling in and distributing tonnes of drugs into Australia.[53]

## See also

[edit]

* Queensland portal

* List of people legally executed in Queensland

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "The Service". Queensland Police. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
2. ^ Dennien, Matt (21 October 2020). "What is youth crime, and is it on the rise in Queensland?". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
3. ^ "Hooning". www.qld.gov.au. Government of Queensland. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
4. ^ "Graffiti". www.qld.gov.au. Government of Queensland. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
5. ^ "Sharing intimate images without consent". www.qld.gov.au. Government of Queensland. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
6. ^ "Transport fare evasion". www.qld.gov.au. Government of Queensland. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
7. ^ Grace, Grace (9 September 2020). "Wage theft now a crime in Queensland". statements.qld.gov.au. Government of Queensland. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
8. ^ a b c Sato, Kenji (30 September 2023). "Data suggests Queensland's crime rate decreasing despite reports of surging youth offences". ABC News. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
9. ^ Guest, Adam (3 June 2025). "What Happens If You Get Caught Shoplifting in Queensland?". Guest Lawyers. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
10. ^ Gillespie, Eden (3 August 2022). "Queensland corruption watchdog has 'largely abandoned responsibility' for complaints against police, inquiry hears". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
11. ^ a b Smee, Ben; Smith, Aaron (26 February 2023). "'Everybody has had a gutful': online anti-crime groups propel Queensland to a political reckoning". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
12. ^ "History". Crime Stoppers Queensland. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
13. ^ "Online Crime Map". qps-ocm.s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
14. ^ "Queensland Government releases list of outlaw motorcycle gang premises as clubhouses close down". The Courier-Mail. Nationwide News. 19 October 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
15. ^ Riga, Rachel (30 March 2023). "Jack's Law passes Queensland parliament, giving police 'incredibly robust' powers to deter knife crime". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
16. ^ "Police warn against vigilante action in Rockhampton after anti-crime protesters march at alleged offenders' homes". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 8 May 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
17. ^ "Coercive control laws". Government of Queensland. 13 May 2025.
18. ^ Pollard, Emma (20 April 2023). "New Queensland drug laws will keep thousands of people out of justice system, advocates say". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
19. ^ "Queensland becomes first Australian state to introduce pill testing in move away from '1950s drug policy'". The Guardian. 25 February 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
20. ^ Wuth, Robyn (22 February 2023). "Qld health bodies welcome moves to decriminalise minor drug possession". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
21. ^ Burt, Jemima (22 February 2023). "Queensland is to relax its drug laws, even for ice and heroin. How could it affect you?". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
22. ^ "Illicit drug markets in Queensland" (PDF). www.ccc.qld.gov.au. Crime and Corruption Commission. December 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
23. ^ a b "Australian Federal Police report largest ever detection of heroin in Queensland after 336kg shipment seized". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 4 April 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
24. ^ a b Green, Eli (1 August 2023). "Police raid Queensland's biggest drug lab likened to a Breaking Bad facility". news.com.au. Nationwide News. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
25. ^ Gillespie, Eden (19 April 2023). "Queensland among worst violators of children's rights in youth justice system, research finds". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
26. ^ a b Stone, Lucy; Levingston, Rebecca (27 August 2021). "Queensland's crackdown on serious youth crime 'working', police say". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
27. ^ Eaton, Matt; Utting, Alexandria (24 January 2023). "Queensland tops nation for child detention and youth repeat offenders, Productivity Commission data reveals". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
28. ^ O'Flaherty, Antonia (23 February 2023). "What is it like inside one of Queensland's youth detention centres?". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
29. ^ a b Riga, Rachel (13 March 2023). "Girls will be locked up for longer if Queensland passes new youth justice laws, advocates warn". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
30. ^ "Dedicated youth remand facility to be built at Wacol near existing Brisbane Youth Detention Centre and adult prisons". ABC News. 5 October 2023. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
31. ^ "Youth-dominated crimes rise again in Qld". 7News. 21 April 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
32. ^ a b O'Flaherty, Antonia; Riga, Rachel (9 May 2023). "Dozens of juveniles charged with breach of bail in Queensland's youth crime crackdown". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
33. ^ a b Dan, Butler (25 August 2023). "'Targeting our kids': proposed Queensland laws will allow children to be put in police watch houses". SBS. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
34. ^ Lynch, Lydia (27 April 2019). "'A break-in every hour': How many intruders are in your area?". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
35. ^ "QLD: would you buy in a burglary hotspot? | YIP". Yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
36. ^ Cornish, Lisa (12 January 2014). "Brisbane's Fortitude Valley heads the Queensland list of street violence hotspots". news.com.au. Nationwide News. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
37. ^ a b L. Payne, Jason; T. Langfield, Cameron (March 2022). "Drug markets and COVID-19: A spatiotemporal study of drug offence detection rates in Brisbane, Australia". International Journal of Drug Policy. 101. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103561. PMC 9759315. PMID 34965491.
38. ^ Lynch, Lydia (16 June 2019). "Police stats reveal the Queensland island where drug offences are rife". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
39. ^ Read, Cloe (9 August 2023). "Where are Brisbane's crime hotspots, and why? See how your suburb fares". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
40. ^ "Queensland Crime Statistics". Queensland Police News. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
41. ^ "Wavell Heights' Commuters to Benefit from Improved Security of North Brisbane Train Station". Wavell Heights News. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
42. ^ a b Fraser, Kelmeny (10 September 2008). "Train station assault figures revealed". City News. Archived from the original on 19 September 2008. Retrieved 21 September 2008.
43. ^ "Security initiatives". www.queenslandrail.com.au. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
44. ^ "Palaszczuk Government bolsters public transport safety - The Queensland Cabinet and Ministerial Directory". statements.qld.gov.au. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
45. ^ "Bus driver safety". translink.com.au. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
46. ^ "Minister reactivates youth violence taskforce". 5 August 2008. Archived from the original on 8 August 2008.
47. ^ "Police video shows the dramatic moment wanted NSW fugitive Mostafa Baluch is found hiding in a shipping container - ABC News". ABC News. 10 November 2021.
48. ^ a b c Ferrier, Tracey (9 June 2021). "Operation nabs 'major' Qld crime figures". Retrieved 15 July 2023.
49. ^ Quattrocelli, Peter (21 May 2023). "Copper theft spikes in south-east Queensland as sporting clubs repeatedly targeted". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
50. ^ "Car theft in Queensland is up to a 10 year high". Sky News Australia. 7 June 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
51. ^ Burt, Jemima (5 May 2023). "In Queensland, where you're most likely to get your car stolen, people are taking steps to foil would-be thieves". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
52. ^ Eaton, Matt (17 May 2021). "Queensland domestic violence cases still rising sharply, expert warns coercive control law will be no quick fix". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
53. ^ "Brisbane man charged over botched drug plot which led to bricks of cocaine washing up on NSW beaches". ABC News. 18 April 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2024.

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[edit]

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