Victorian police abused recording procedures to improve crime clearance rates, an Ombudsman report has found.
The investigation into crime statistics and police numbers tabled in state parliament on Wednesday found that some police misused recording procedures "to make it appear that more crime has been successfully solved than is actually the case".
Crime in Victoria is captured on the Law Enforcement Assistance Program (LEAP) database.
Some offenders arrested and processed had unrelated, unsolved offences for which no one has been arrested added to their file, to "clear up" crime rates, the report said.
The report identified antiquated administrative practices for recording crime and outdated technology as major impediments to accurate reporting.
The matter has been referred to the Office of Police Integrity for further investigation.
The Police Association said it was not in the interests of its members to cook the books to make the crime statistics look better.
The association's secretary Greg Davis said some fault lies with the system, which he described as "cumbersome".
"The statistics are going to be as accurate as the system allows them to be," Mr Davis said.
"But I don't think even the Ombudsman has been able to find evidence of people deliberately cooking the books.
"It's not in the interests of any operational police officer to do that."
aap 11 Mar 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment