FOUR out of five people on a police target list in the Tamworth area for domestic violence have been charged with nine new offences.
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The domestic violence suspect target management plans (DV-STMPs) have only been in force since February and have seen local police home in on perpetrators at high or extreme risk of committing a domestic violence (DV) offence in Tamworth and outlying areas.
In the Oxley Command, police have five men and women on the list – four of whom are facing fresh criminal charges – majority of those for DV incidents.
“The DV-STMPs enable police to proactively target suspects rather than wait for a victim to contact us,” Oxley Inspector Matt French told The Leader.
“It’s about helping those who are at risk, and at the outset that is the most important part of any investigation.”
The new figures come on the eve of White Ribbon Day, which will be marked across Australia this Friday.
Inspector French said the DV-STMPs were a proactive policing resource with officers allocated taskings to focus on a suspect.
“It provides a legislative framework for us to intensely target the individuals involved,” he said.
“This is another resource that allows us to intervene and potentially prevent a domestic violence offence being committed.”
STMPs are already in place across the Barwon, New England and Oxley areas with recidivist break-in, robbery or serious crime suspects on watch lists.
The DV lists also allow police to carry out surveillance and stop and checks, meaning they will face the highest level of scrutiny by officers.
Police said early intervention was key in DV cases because most incidents are not reported by the parties involved.
“The majority of domestic violence matters are reported by neighbours, or family or community members,” Inspector French said.
“It’s not a case of victims contacting us in every case, and we want to ensure the public know they can come to police or call us when they have concerns, or are at risk, or have been the victim of a DV offence – whether it is a verbal or physical assault or intimidation.”
A suspect can remain on the list for an unlimited time and every month senior police in conjunction with domestic violence officers review police intelligence, charge sheets, an offender’s criminal history or acts of violence on their record.
Reports from protected persons can also be taken into account to determine when a suspect should be placed on a targeted plan.