The policeman will face court after he was allegedly caught stealing chocolate, ice cream and soft drinks from the police station’s food after his colleagues set up a hidden camera.
- A Longreach, Queensland, officer has been charged
- He allegedly stole $36 worth of candy from his social club.
A Queensland police officer will face court after he was allegedly caught with a hidden camera making off with $36 worth of chocolate, ice cream and soft drinks from the station canteen.
Longreach’s lead constable was charged by his co-workers after detectives hid a camera in the station’s mess hall between August and September last year.
The station had a “cashless payment system” for members of its social club, in which officers marked off the food they took on a sheet and billed at the end of the month.
However, police allege that the Queensland constable took sweets without marking the sheet indicating what was owed on nine occasions, the mail reports.
Queensland Police Union Chairman Ian Leavers criticized the force for charging the officer over a seemingly small dispute.
“It’s as if last year’s Commission of Inquiry never happened as the intimidation of the police by the higher up police is getting worse,” he said.
“This whole thing is an embarrassment to the police and this is another example of bullying behavior in the workplace.
“This officer should never have been charged and this is a miscarriage of justice, a gross abuse of the court process, and a great waste of valuable police time.”
A Queensland police officer has been charged with shoplifting after he allegedly took $36 worth of sugar snacks from Longreach Police Station (above)
Leavers said he was disappointed to see officers “acting like children to someone who doesn’t put a ‘check mark’ on a piece of paper.”
“This appears to be nothing more than a minor workplace dispute and should have been dealt with in a professional, expeditious and adult manner by senior police management rather than wasting everyone’s time and money, however , that is clearly expecting too much,” he said. .
‘The handling of this matter is a perfect example of everything that is wrong with the senior management of the Queensland Police Service.
The agent will face court on charges of theft of chocolate, ice cream and soft drinks
“Senior police should now show some belated common sense and immediately drop the charges and issue an apology to this officer.”
The agent reportedly asked the social club in March, several months before the alleged robbery, about changing the payment system. His suggestion was rejected and an email was sent to all staff explaining the system.
Station officers set up a hidden camera after a detective was alerted to the lack of food.
The officer allegedly refused to be interviewed by the internal police Ethical Standards Command in September and instead requested to undergo a mediation process in November.
The matter was brought up to the social club and they voted to skip mediation and take the sheriff to court. He was indicted in January.
Queensland Police have declined to comment on the situation as it is still before the court.
The agent will appear before the Court of First Instance of Esmeralda on March 28.
