The Queensland Police Service (QPS) has closed a proactive two-month operation targeting the state's most high risk and high harm domestic and family violence offenders.
Operation Tango Alessa, ran across five police districts targeting 100 offenders identified by specialist domestic and family violence officers and forensic behavioural specialists to be most likely to escalate into high risk, high harm behaviour.
Acting Superintendent Ben Martain said specialist police and detectives in the QPS' Domestic and Family Violence and Vulnerable Persons Units proactively targeted offenders using focussed deterrence strategies to monitor them and hold them to account.
"We're not waiting for a Triple Zero (000) call, we are out there knocking on the doors of these offenders and letting them know that we are watching them and will use all legal means available to hold them to account if they don't desist in their offending," Acting Superintendent Martain said.
"We used a series of risk assessment tools, looked at risk factors, previous offences and overlaid the knowledge of our specialist officers and DFV behavioural specialists to identify offenders whose behaviour was most likely to escalate."
Acting Superintendent Martain said engaging with offenders and victims outside of the point of crisis allowed police to have more constructive interactions, disrupt offending and provide support to potential victims.
"For some, this means linking them into one of the more than 530 referral agencies to provide support, for others this means checking their compliance and using a range of criminal justice system and non-criminal justice responses to hold them accountable for their actions," he said.
"In one case we identified that an offender was in a new relationship not previously known to police and were able to assist in supporting their partner to leave and take out a Domestic Violence Order (DVO) based on activity that had occurred."
An evaluation of the target cohort's offending during and post-operation identified a 50 per cent decrease in domestic and family violence offences. Acting Superintendent Martain said the QPS had also developed the Service's first High Risk High Harm dashboard to allow the Operation Alessa approach to be rolled out on an ongoing basis.
"The dashboard is now operational across the state for use by our specialist police, enabling officers to monitor these offenders, easily access and cross check information on their offending history, risk factors, court orders and other information to supplement existing knowledge and operational approaches," he said.
"Everyone has a right to live without the fear of domestic and family violence. We are focused on rolling out these proactive focussed deterrence operations that will assist in protecting victims and holding perpetrators to account."
Operation Tango Alessa ran from 27 March - 27 May targeting 100 offenders across five police districts (Logan, South Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Far North).
