Police officers charged with incest, rape and child abuse

About 78 Victoria police and protective services officers are facing criminal charges and driving offences, new data from the force shows.

The heinous alleged crimes some officers are accused of include rape, incest, sexual assault and the possession and production of child abuse material.

Victoria Police has released crime data at the request of police The Australian on Thursday.

It details the alleged crimes of 68 officers on and off duty and another five charged with traffic offences.

These traffic fines include reckless driving, drunk driving, speeding over 45 km/h and reckless conduct.

The total, 73, includes seven first constables, 20 senior constables, 26 leading senior constables, 14 sergeants, five senior sergeants and one ranked inspector or above.

They are accused of committing about 130 crimes, with one officer accused of incest involving a sibling.

Three of the charges are rape, five of sexual assault, ten of common law sexual assault, three of false imprisonment and one of kidnapping.

Police officers also face seven charges of breaching family violence intervention orders.

Another five PSOs are also facing criminal charges, bringing the total to 78.

Two are charged with committing an indecent act against a child under 16, and one with alleged sexual penetration of a child under 16.

Of the PSOs charged, two were general PSOs and three were senior PSOs.

Victoria Police stressed in a statement that the charged officers make up just 0.435 per cent of the nearly 18,000-strong force.

As of April 16, Victoria Police employed 16,436 police officers and 1,464 PSOs.

“Victoria Police will not shy away from taking action to uphold community trust in our organisation,” a spokesperson said.

“We actively encourage people to report unlawful behavior and are not deterred from thoroughly investigating complaints, regardless of a police officer’s rank, position or tenure.”

Police hoped the release of the data would remind all officers that “no one in Victoria Police is above the law.”

“While the vast majority of police do the right thing day in and day out, it is vital that we call out those who think the rules do not apply to them,” the spokesperson said.

‘In fact, the authority and responsibility entrusted to police means that they should rightly be held to a higher standard than the rest of the community, both on and off duty.’

Since January 1, at least fourteen police officers have been charged with criminal offenses.

The most recent was a 51-year-old from the Transit and Public Safety Command, who was charged Monday with five counts of sexually assaulting two women.

The senior officer is said to have committed the crimes in September 2023 while off duty.

Professional Standards detectives on April 18 charged a 36-year-old Southern Region sergeant with one count of unlawful access to information in June 2023.

Worryingly, there has been one count each of access to child abuse material and pornography.

Other charges include persistent sexual abuse of a child under 16 and sexual assault by touching a child under 16.

Victoria Police officers have also been charged with one count of possessing child abuse material on a carriage service, one count of producing child abuse material and one count of sexual activity in the presence of a child under 16.

Several charges related to police duties are also pending in court, including two charges of assaulting fellow officers and one charge of carrying/using loaded firearms in a densely populated area.

In January, police officers were charged with driving under the influence, perverting the course of justice, assault and battery, among other charges.

Two officers were charged with assault and battery in February.

A sergeant and a leading senior officer were each charged with assault in March.

So far in the month of April, through April 22, one officer has been charged with a hit-and-run and a senior officer has been charged with filing a false report.

A Victoria Police spokesperson said: ‘If a police officer is charged with a serious offence, they may be suspended with pay, suspended without pay, transferred to other duties or ordered to take leave.

‘Some may resign before their case is decided by the court. Once cases are completed in court, Victoria Police may also take disciplinary action.

‘This may result in a reprimand, a fine, deferral of charges for 12 months on good behavior, a period of ineligibility for promotion, a reduction in rank, a reduction in pay, a transfer to another positions or dismissal.’

Of the 73 police officers facing charges and traffic violations, 33 were not given interim action, 13 were suspended with pay, 13 were suspended without pay and 14 were transferred to other duties.

Of the five PSOs charged, one was not assigned an interim obligation, two were suspended without pay and two were reassigned to other duties.