As car thieves and other juvenile and youth offenders are disengaged with society and seeking notoriety by using social media, police call for public assistance in securing vehicles and identifying stolen cars.

Last week, Queensland Police Assistant Commissioner Cheryl Scanlon addressed the media as questions surrounding the nature of youth crime on the Downs were circling in the community.

She provided an update on how the problem was being tackled by the recently assembled Youth Justice Taskforce, a group led by the Queensland Police Service in collaboration with agencies such as the Department of Children, Youth Justice and Multicultural Affairs.

The task force was set up in February 2021 in response to concerns in regional Queensland about youth crime.

Assistant Commissioner Scanlon said while she has been dealing with vehicle thefts in the region for over four decades, the current batch of offenders is increasingly taking to social media to show off their prizes.

“If you post online, you are providing evidence to Police and we will shut accounts down, with the help of the national e-Safety Commissionaire,” she said.

Assistant Commissioner Scanlon said local communities could also play a role, by engaging young people in social activities and alerting police as soon as stolen vehicles were spotted.

“Our police are doing everything they can,” she said.

“It’s also about community cooperation with letting us know about stolen vehicles.

“It comes back to asking ‘Why are these young people out late at night?”

“These young people are disengaged with mainstream life.”

Assistant Commissioner Scanlon said a key focus of the Taskforce more broadly is a group of about 400 young offenders across the state who police say commit 50 per cent of youth crime.

The majority of the offenders lack family support and are disconnected from their communities and society in general.

“They remain the focus, not just in policing their activities, opposing bail, holding them in custody where we need to, but also importantly, the work that must occur to change over time that must focus on the root causes of crime – not just the way police respond,” she said.

This article appeared in On Our Selection News, 1 December 2022.