Queensland’s police minister has apologised after domestic abuse victims’ addresses were shared to their perpetrators.
The apology was extended to at least five victims who were hiding when they reported being harassed and threatened by phone or email.
Police listed the victims’ home address as the location of the crime, which was then printed on court documentation and given to the criminal.
“Of course in the instances that have been identified,” Police Minister Mark Ryan stated.
“Everyone is very sorry for that, I’m sorry about that, the police service is very sorry about that.”
One victim filed a complaint with the police, the police ministry, and the Queensland Premier’s office.
However, until the issue was brought to light, nobody recognised what was happening to her or what might be happening to other victims.
“I was briefed by the commissioner on that day that they only became aware of an apparent systems issue following media enquiries and media reporting,” Ryan stated.
“Advice was immediately sought from the Queensland Police Service, it’s for the QPS to analyse matters, they’ve got to test the allegation.”
The minister for police claimed that as soon as he and senior officers learnt there might be more victims, they took action and changed the system to make sure that further addresses weren’t inadvertently made public.
“This is obviously a very serious matter,” Ryan stated. “
