July 8, 2026 • 8 mins
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, NT Police, we know that they have now captured
that prisoner who escaped NT Corrections custody at Royal Darwin
Hospital earlier this week. Now. In a statement at the time,
Corrections said that officers immediately attempted to apprehend this prisoner
but were unsuccessful. NT Police were then notified immediately and
commenced to search operation. But this incident follows two separate
(00:23):
prisoner escapes on the fifth of June as well as
the twenty fourth of June. Now joining us on the
show to talk more about this from Corrections, it's the
Acting Deputy Commissioner of Adult Operations, Kate Chambers. Good morning, Kate,
good morning, how are you? Yeah, really well, thanks so
much for joining us this morning. Now, can you talk
(00:45):
me through what happened on the weekend.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Yes, so, Codie, we know that we had a prisoner
from Darwin Correctional Center that was escorted to the Royal
Darwin Hospital and whilst being moved into the emergency department
of the Royal dau In Hospital, that prisoner escaped from
our custody.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
Now, Acting Assistant Commissioner, what's happened since that escape in
terms of looking at what went wrong and exactly what unfolded.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
So, Katie, our first priority is always community safety, and
so initially it's about informing police. It's about working really
closely with police to share intelligence and information and assist
them with their search activities. And we know that police
do an incredible job in locating prisoners under these circumstances,
(01:39):
and we've seen in the recapture of that individual yesterday
that critical work that police have done. Once we've supported
police in that initial recapture piece, it's important that we
take a structured review approach, and we immediately undertook an
internal investigation and immediate review, and that is to establish
(02:02):
what the circumstances are in that first twelve to twenty
four hours so that we can make some critical decisions and.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
What were those circumstances. Because I know that a lot
of people listening will be thinking to themselves, how on
earth does a prisoner who's being escorted, you know, bi
correctional stuff into the hospital get away?
Speaker 2 (02:21):
Yeah, and I understand that concern, Katie, and it's a
valid concern, and the community need to have confidence in
corrections and our ability to maintain the safe security of prisoners.
So what we do is we look at the policies
and the processes. I personally reviewed the CCDV footage from
the hospital, you know, and once we've done that initial investigation,
(02:44):
we make sure that we take immediate action, and the
Assistant Commissioner responsible for custodial operations talk immediate action with
the support of the General Manager to provide advice and
guidance to all of our staff on our expectations, very
clear expectations around hospital escorts and compliance with policy and process.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Kate, I mean, don't like, I don't know who those
correction stuff are. I don't know anything about you know,
those people. But how how did they let him go?
How did he get away?
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Katie. We know that all of our staff come to
work every day to do the best job that they
possibly can, and it's a difficult job, but we deal
with prisoners who don't always want to be in our custody.
And under these circumstances, this prisoner pushed his way past
one of our officers and was able to escape from custody.
(03:41):
You know, our staff did everything they could along with
you know, as I said, the very strong support from
police to relocate him rapidly, and our staff were unable
to bring him back into custody immediately and reported straight
to police Assistant Commissioner.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
We are hearing that staff have now been stood down
as a result of this incident. Is that the case.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Yes, so three of our offices have been placed on
administrative leave. It's really important that there's an opportunity to
review the circumstances in detail, and that that's done objectively
and thoroughly, and to enable that to occur. Though, staff
have been placed on administrative leaf with full pay to
make sure that that investigation can be completed.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
What exactly does that mean administrative leave? So they're still
being paid, but they're not there while this investigation happens.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
Yes, that's right, Katie, And the reason for that is
that we have to ensure that there is a fair process.
We need to make sure that we assess all the
evidence in front of us. We've done an internal review
and I've commissioned an external review as well to look
at the thematics of the circumstances. But what's important is
that we keep the community safe. Critically, we keep prisoners
(04:57):
in our custody and we undertake an independent an investigation
to allow that to occur. We certainly don't want any
further incidents, Katie, and I am making sure that we
do everything in our power to make sure that doesn't happen.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Well, this is the third escape in just over a month.
You know that must be concerning. I know that two
of those have happened with correctional staff monitoring these prisoners.
One of those happening with the private G four s
from the court as I understand it. But you know
in two of these situations they've unfolded at the hospital.
(05:30):
Are you worried that you know that some kind of
like I don't know whether these prisoners are sort of
trading information or whether potentially even correctional stuff for trading
information with prisoners.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
So, Katie, we know that prisoner escapes are among the
most serious incidents that can occur in a correctional facility,
and we take incidents like that extremely seriously. When we
undertake the internal investigation, which has been referred to our
Professional Standards Unit, we look at all of those circumstances.
So we look at the actions of the officers, We
(06:04):
look at the policies and procedures and the application of those.
We also look at the intelligence holdings that we have
and the intelligence holdings that are shared, and we work
very closely with police in how we share those intelligence holdings.
So all of those aspects are examined as part of
the internal review.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
So are you worried that any of those policies or
procedures have been broken or worse?
Speaker 2 (06:28):
So, I wouldn't comment at this early stage of the
investigation on whether policies and procedures have been broken. What
I would say is that they are there for a reason.
We expect them to be followed, and that is a
very clear expectation of us in corrections. They are developed
with time and experience, and there's a reason why they
(06:50):
should be followed.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
If you have just joined us on the show with
me this morning, is the acting Deputy Commissioner of Adult
Operations with Corrections, Kate Chambers. Kate, can you tell me
is the department going to be providing extra training for
staff to ensure that everyone's across the different procedures and
doing things properly or do you feel as though it's
a training issue, Katy.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
That commenced immediately. We on Monday morning had the general
manager provide instruction to staff. We will be providing increased
training to staff. I want to reassure you, Katie and
your listeners that our staff come to work every day
to do the best job possible. I'm confident of that.
We work in a challenging environment, but it's important that
(07:33):
we provide opportunity to review the policies and procedures and
for training to occur, and for our staff to make
sure that those policism procedures are followed.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
And you did mention that external investigation which you've called
to have happened as well. What are you hoping to
get from an external investigation, Katie.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
I ensure that there is an immediate investortion into any
serious incident within our facilities. That's one piece, But where
we have incidents that are you know, have a thematic
piece to them, I want to make sure that we're
addressing all of the issues and understanding all of the complexities.
(08:16):
So we have someone external with the right skills and
experience to come and have a look at the last
incidents to make sure that we're addressing all of those issues.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
Kate, will that review be made public or will the
findings be made public?
Speaker 2 (08:32):
I expect that review will cover off on some really
important security aspects to the way we manage prisoner escorts
and the way we manage hospital visits. That information wouldn't
be made public for obvious reasons in terms of security
and safety.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
Well Acting Deputy Commissioner of Adult Operations with Corrections, Kate Chambers,
I really appreciate your time this morning. Thank you so
much for joining us.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Thank you, Katie, Thanks so much
Well, NT Police, we know that they have now captured
that prisoner who escaped NT Corrections custody at Royal Darwin
Hospital earlier this week. Now. In a statement at the time,
Corrections said that officers immediately attempted to apprehend this prisoner
but were unsuccessful. NT Police were then notified immediately and
commenced to search operation. But this incident follows two separate
(00:23):
prisoner escapes on the fifth of June as well as
the twenty fourth of June. Now joining us on the
show to talk more about this from Corrections, it's the
Acting Deputy Commissioner of Adult Operations, Kate Chambers. Good morning, Kate,
good morning, how are you? Yeah, really well, thanks so
much for joining us this morning. Now, can you talk
(00:45):
me through what happened on the weekend.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Yes, so, Codie, we know that we had a prisoner
from Darwin Correctional Center that was escorted to the Royal
Darwin Hospital and whilst being moved into the emergency department
of the Royal dau In Hospital, that prisoner escaped from
our custody.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
Now, Acting Assistant Commissioner, what's happened since that escape in
terms of looking at what went wrong and exactly what unfolded.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
So, Katie, our first priority is always community safety, and
so initially it's about informing police. It's about working really
closely with police to share intelligence and information and assist
them with their search activities. And we know that police
do an incredible job in locating prisoners under these circumstances,
(01:39):
and we've seen in the recapture of that individual yesterday
that critical work that police have done. Once we've supported
police in that initial recapture piece, it's important that we
take a structured review approach, and we immediately undertook an
internal investigation and immediate review, and that is to establish
(02:02):
what the circumstances are in that first twelve to twenty
four hours so that we can make some critical decisions and.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
What were those circumstances. Because I know that a lot
of people listening will be thinking to themselves, how on
earth does a prisoner who's being escorted, you know, bi
correctional stuff into the hospital get away?
Speaker 2 (02:21):
Yeah, and I understand that concern, Katie, and it's a
valid concern, and the community need to have confidence in
corrections and our ability to maintain the safe security of prisoners.
So what we do is we look at the policies
and the processes. I personally reviewed the CCDV footage from
the hospital, you know, and once we've done that initial investigation,
(02:44):
we make sure that we take immediate action, and the
Assistant Commissioner responsible for custodial operations talk immediate action with
the support of the General Manager to provide advice and
guidance to all of our staff on our expectations, very
clear expectations around hospital escorts and compliance with policy and process.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Kate, I mean, don't like, I don't know who those
correction stuff are. I don't know anything about you know,
those people. But how how did they let him go?
How did he get away?
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Katie. We know that all of our staff come to
work every day to do the best job that they
possibly can, and it's a difficult job, but we deal
with prisoners who don't always want to be in our custody.
And under these circumstances, this prisoner pushed his way past
one of our officers and was able to escape from custody.
(03:41):
You know, our staff did everything they could along with
you know, as I said, the very strong support from
police to relocate him rapidly, and our staff were unable
to bring him back into custody immediately and reported straight
to police Assistant Commissioner.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
We are hearing that staff have now been stood down
as a result of this incident. Is that the case.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Yes, so three of our offices have been placed on
administrative leave. It's really important that there's an opportunity to
review the circumstances in detail, and that that's done objectively
and thoroughly, and to enable that to occur. Though, staff
have been placed on administrative leaf with full pay to
make sure that that investigation can be completed.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
What exactly does that mean administrative leave? So they're still
being paid, but they're not there while this investigation happens.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
Yes, that's right, Katie, And the reason for that is
that we have to ensure that there is a fair process.
We need to make sure that we assess all the
evidence in front of us. We've done an internal review
and I've commissioned an external review as well to look
at the thematics of the circumstances. But what's important is
that we keep the community safe. Critically, we keep prisoners
(04:57):
in our custody and we undertake an independent an investigation
to allow that to occur. We certainly don't want any
further incidents, Katie, and I am making sure that we
do everything in our power to make sure that doesn't happen.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Well, this is the third escape in just over a month.
You know that must be concerning. I know that two
of those have happened with correctional staff monitoring these prisoners.
One of those happening with the private G four s
from the court as I understand it. But you know
in two of these situations they've unfolded at the hospital.
(05:30):
Are you worried that you know that some kind of
like I don't know whether these prisoners are sort of
trading information or whether potentially even correctional stuff for trading
information with prisoners.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
So, Katie, we know that prisoner escapes are among the
most serious incidents that can occur in a correctional facility,
and we take incidents like that extremely seriously. When we
undertake the internal investigation, which has been referred to our
Professional Standards Unit, we look at all of those circumstances.
So we look at the actions of the officers, We
(06:04):
look at the policies and procedures and the application of those.
We also look at the intelligence holdings that we have
and the intelligence holdings that are shared, and we work
very closely with police in how we share those intelligence holdings.
So all of those aspects are examined as part of
the internal review.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
So are you worried that any of those policies or
procedures have been broken or worse?
Speaker 2 (06:28):
So, I wouldn't comment at this early stage of the
investigation on whether policies and procedures have been broken. What
I would say is that they are there for a reason.
We expect them to be followed, and that is a
very clear expectation of us in corrections. They are developed
with time and experience, and there's a reason why they
(06:50):
should be followed.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
If you have just joined us on the show with
me this morning, is the acting Deputy Commissioner of Adult
Operations with Corrections, Kate Chambers. Kate, can you tell me
is the department going to be providing extra training for
staff to ensure that everyone's across the different procedures and
doing things properly or do you feel as though it's
a training issue, Katy.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
That commenced immediately. We on Monday morning had the general
manager provide instruction to staff. We will be providing increased
training to staff. I want to reassure you, Katie and
your listeners that our staff come to work every day
to do the best job possible. I'm confident of that.
We work in a challenging environment, but it's important that
(07:33):
we provide opportunity to review the policies and procedures and
for training to occur, and for our staff to make
sure that those policism procedures are followed.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
And you did mention that external investigation which you've called
to have happened as well. What are you hoping to
get from an external investigation, Katie.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
I ensure that there is an immediate investortion into any
serious incident within our facilities. That's one piece, But where
we have incidents that are you know, have a thematic
piece to them, I want to make sure that we're
addressing all of the issues and understanding all of the complexities.
(08:16):
So we have someone external with the right skills and
experience to come and have a look at the last
incidents to make sure that we're addressing all of those issues.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
Kate, will that review be made public or will the
findings be made public?
Speaker 2 (08:32):
I expect that review will cover off on some really
important security aspects to the way we manage prisoner escorts
and the way we manage hospital visits. That information wouldn't
be made public for obvious reasons in terms of security
and safety.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
Well Acting Deputy Commissioner of Adult Operations with Corrections, Kate Chambers,
I really appreciate your time this morning. Thank you so
much for joining us.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Thank you, Katie, Thanks so much
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