WA Police Confidential (Formerly Operation Podcast)
The official WA Police Force Podcast
WA Police Confidential (Formerly Operation Podcast)
Ep 16 - Missing Person Case Revisited
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Episode 16 of WA Police Confidential! The official WA Police Force Podcast.
On this week’s show:
- Reality Star and Police Sergeant Taz Etto returns to present this week's Takedown of the Year candidates!
- Dr. Umneea Khan and Superintendent Andrew Wilson joins the episode to discuss Family and Domestic Violence.
- The mysterious disappearance of Luke Hazelwood who went missing on Christmas Eve 2025.
- First Class Constable Amy Page walks us through the Safe and Found initiative!
- All this and more!
This podcast discusses real-life crimes and law enforcement matters. It may include detailed descriptions of criminal activity, traumatic incidents, and other content that could be confronting or distressing, particularly for victim survivors. Listener discretion is advised. If you find any of these topics upsetting, please consider whether this content is right for you and seek support if needed.
SPEAKER_03You're listening to WA Police Confidential, the official podcast of the WA Police Force. I'm your host, Sergeant Nate Gilmore.
SPEAKER_02And I'm Claire Sienta. We've got a jam-packed show for you this week.
SPEAKER_03Claire, what would you do if someone that you loved went missing and they were vulnerable, living with dementia, autism, or another cognitive impairment?
SPEAKER_02Well, those first few hours are critical when someone goes missing. We'll break down how you can help police during search operations and the very simple information that could make all the difference. We'll also talk to one unit doing some very important work in regional WA, delivering real results in the community.
SPEAKER_03Taz is also back with us to talk more about the takedown of the year nominations.
SPEAKER_02And later, Joey will join us for an inside look at the Family Domestic Violence Division and the work happening behind the scenes to protect some of the most vulnerable people in our community. Stay tuned, this matters.
SPEAKER_03Claire, you're also back with us later with some of the news headlines, plus our history fact for the week. What does it take to rise through the ranks of the WA police force faster than almost anyone has in its history?
SPEAKER_02Well, you'll find out later. Plus, a whole lot more coming up in this episode. Nate, are you ready?
SPEAKER_03I'm ready. Let's get into it. This is WA Police Confidential. You're listening to WA Police Confidential. The WA police respond to calls for help. In regional WA in particular, those calls for help are often made by Aboriginal people who are often the victims of crime. The perpetrators of those crimes can sometimes also be Aboriginal. It is a fact that Aboriginal people are also overrepresented as both victims and offenders in our justice system. That's why it's critical that police are listening to the community, in particular our Indigenous elders, in making sure we're doing everything we can, in particular, to help victims of crime. Today we're joined by Constable Eric Gibson from the WA Police Aboriginal Affairs Division to talk more about how one of the key partnerships in regional WA is helping to reduce crime. Eric, thanks for joining us.
SPEAKER_11Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER_03What's been happening out at Geraldton?
SPEAKER_11Yeah, well, I mean, a lot's been happening out in Geraldton, but um one of the major positive things that's happened is the Geraldton Police Aboriginal Advisory Group has um hit a year, which is huge. Um and I guess me being here today to talk about it is more so to point out just how good of an achievement it is. Um I personally I think any time where we can get community members and police working together and um talking and discussing about issues within their community and figuring out how to resolve those issues, it's a win. Um but the fact that they've been doing it for a year now and meeting every month for 12 months is even better.
SPEAKER_03So this is a collaboration between police, elders, um who else is involved?
SPEAKER_11Community members um pretty much the the only crit um criteria to be a member of the group is that at least half of its membership need to be aboriginal. Okay. That's it. As long as you're a community member and um pretty keen on helping out your community, you're in.
SPEAKER_02And the work that you guys do is so important, um, particularly in our regional parts of the state. What is that, what does that work actually look like on the ground and what does it mean for people that live in these communities?
SPEAKER_11Yeah, so um the the biggest takeaway from the Aboriginal advisory groups is it's an avenue to have that joint partnership with the local police officer in charge of the of your police station. And um we actually say if you've got a problem, just don't sugarcoat it, let's let's figure it out. Um if you've got a problem with the local police and their attitude and you think that they could be better, this is the time to voice it. And that's what Geraldton's done uh in particular. We've got other um groups throughout the state. So we've got Broome, Bunbury, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing, um Paws Creek, Kananara, Quanana, Midland, Northam, and Waruna. So you're busy. Yes. Um yeah, look, the the the goal is to get I think it's um 68 groups up and running throughout the state, which is a huge ask. Um, but it it's a case of shoot for the stars, land at the moon. Nice.
SPEAKER_02And I mean this sort of work it it has a real impact in the communities. What have you seen in the in the last year p in particular in Geraldton um of the impact this group has had?
SPEAKER_11Yeah, uh look Geraldton I I cannot speak higher of them. They've actually really taken action. The first thing that they did was bring back their Yamiji patrol. Um and what they do is it's a um non-government organization running it. They jump in a bus, drive around, any kids that are wandering the street or um anyone who may be um needing a lift home, they'll do that to get them off the street back home where they're safe. And because of that, there's also been a reduction in crime because um the kids in particular aren't one wandering the street being bored. Following that, um we had our community liaison officers actually attend the Amoji Patrol, and they noticed that there is a huge overcrowding issue in Jero. But then there's also a lot of houses where their windows are boarded up. So they they spoke about it together and they said, Well, this doesn't make sense. We've got houses, why aren't they being used? So they they wrote a letter of concern to the local member of parliament um outlining how it doesn't make sense that we've got, you know, a dozen people in one household, yet there's a household not being used.
SPEAKER_02It's something that is obviously, you know, having a real impact in terms of, like you said, a reduction in crime. But ultimately it's keeping the community safe, and that is what police do day in and day out, right?
SPEAKER_11Yeah. The other thing that i it is great with is and and I'll speak about Derby in particular. Derby see uh saw a significant decrease in their crime, uh stole stolen motor vehicles in particular. And the um acting senior sergeant at the time actually took the time to thank the community members because although we get out there, we lock them up, you know, the the bad guys and um send them to court, that's just a reactive um measure. We we actually need to be proactive in a in a certain way. Um and the way Derby did it was they they really focused on getting these young kids into a bit of a routine and um getting back into school and and reintegrated into a uh normal normal life instead of running the streets and running amok. So yeah, the the acting senior sergeant took the time to thank the community members and that in itself was a massive leap towards building trust between those community members and and police. And it was really, really good to see.
SPEAKER_03There's a lot of behind the scenes work that the WA police Aboriginal Affairs Division does. Is there anything that um that you'd be able to talk about that you guys do um daily um behind the scenes that the community might not be aware of?
SPEAKER_11Yeah, look, we we try our hardest to be a bit of a a big brother in the sense, you know, uh we check um all of our reporting measures every morning to see what's going on throughout the state. And where we can we'll go and touch base with victims of crime. Um and if we can't, we'll send out our community liaison officers to do it. So we we try and have a bit of an oversight on what's happening throughout the state and if it requires some sort of um contact between us and community, uh, we'll do it. And and the reason we try and do it is because we've got Aboriginal staff within our office and and we go in and we we get a foot in the door, you know, saying who we are, where we're from, and then go from there and set up a point of liaison with local police and and that community member.
SPEAKER_03How is it received um in the indigenous community? Because there is a like a bit of a mistrust of law enforcement historically. How how is it received when they see someone like yourself who's an indigenous person um roll up in a blue shirt? Is is is there a uh like you said before, there's there's that kind of um breaking down of walls or barriers? Does that work quite well?
SPEAKER_11Yeah, it does. It works well. Um there is a sense of pride as well from from community seeing um the likes of of Revis and I in a blue uniform. The other thing is talking about Revis, I've never met a person who can figure out how he's related to another Aboriginal person, regardless of where, all the way up to Kananara down to Albany. He can figure it out. It is he's like a magician. And for yourself, Eric, where where's your mob from? Yeah, so um I'm a Wajak Nungar and Miriam Magum man. So um Wajak being yeah, Perth. The local metro area. Um my descendants are the the Garlets, uh the Turvies and the Bennels. So it's a pretty pretty strong families there. And then um Miriam Magurum's from the Torres Strait, so Murray Island, uh a tiny little island where the the airstrips are third of the size of the island itself. That's amazing.
SPEAKER_03That's really interesting to you know to have that sort of um background and um and bring it to to to this agency because we we're dealing with indigenous people daily, um, and we need to um I guess keep those relationships going and like you said with the advisory groups to to be proactive in that space, isn't it?
SPEAKER_11Yeah. I think the the biggest part, you know, it's no um secret that incarcer the incarceration rates for our um Indigenous people are way beyond what they should be. Um but what we can do internally is just make sure that we are um culturally sensitive and aware. So especially when you're going up north and and you know, having um a son-in-law speak to a mother and in-law is a big no-no, and people are doing it because they're just not aware. Um so if we can educate on things like that, it'll make the life of our GD's officers a little bit easier.
SPEAKER_02Well, thank you very much for joining us. Well, if you're yeah, if you're interested in in getting involved, we um we're always recruiting, we're always looking for people.
SPEAKER_03So Especially people from an indigenous background, all cultural backgrounds um on that note. Um, go to the Let's Join Forces website and um have a look and apply.
SPEAKER_11If you uh do want to get involved with these police Aboriginal advisory groups, please call 9222 1076. Give us a call, uh, ask for either Eric or Greg and just tell us what town you're from and that you're interested because the chances are if we don't have a group already, we're looking at creating one in your your local area.
SPEAKER_02Big things to come.
SPEAKER_11Big things to come.
SPEAKER_02Stay tuned. Well, this is WA Police Confidential. Well, Nate, police are in the business of keeping the community safe. They sure are. It's pretty much the priority of WA Police.
SPEAKER_03Public safety, we are the experts.
SPEAKER_02And naturally, that comes, you know, oftentimes with saving people's lives. And we don't say that lightly, you know, it's it's a big part of the job. I'm now joined by senior constable Amy Page, who knows a little bit about saving people's lives through the Safe and Found programme. Thanks for joining us. Yeah, thank you so much for having me. Tell us what is the Safe and Found program.
SPEAKER_12So Safe and Found is an initiative that WA Police uh, in consultation with Medicalert, put together to help a broad spectrum of people living with uh dementia, Alzheimer's, autism, and other cognitive abilities to be able to uh help look after them when they're the at their most vulnerable. So when they've gone missing or gone for a walk and we don't know how or where to find them, we're building that safety network around them.
SPEAKER_02What does it actually look like in terms of, you know, is there an alert? Are they, you know, how does it actually work for people who don't know?
SPEAKER_12Yeah, so essentially when you sign up um to Safe and Found, you're filling out what's called a lost person behaviour form. That's giving us a lot of information about who you are as a person. We're taking a lot of the consents as well from families. So the consent to share your image, the consent to uh be able to put out those social media alerts and bolos really quickly so that we can help um find you a lot quicker using the resources that we have. Uh essentially, we want to be able to build this picture of a person and what their prior habits may have been or what they might be doing or going and seeing and doing.
SPEAKER_03Just to break it down for those that um might not um sort of understand the concept, lost person behaviours and asking the family all of these questions to coordinate like a land search. Um, this is a time saver, isn't it?
SPEAKER_12Absolutely. I mean, those those questions can be quite onerous and sometimes, yes, they do take a lot of time for our frontline officers to get all that information. Imagine knowing that you've got all that information there already and that we can just as soon as we need to get that information within minutes out to our frontline officers so that they can be on the front foot looking for these people.
SPEAKER_02And minutes are crucial when it comes to a missing person. Have you got any kind of examples, real life examples of how this has actually helped find somebody?
SPEAKER_12Yeah, so plenty of times we see that people have gone missing, and I think families feel that they have to do it alone and they spend uh hours and hours potentially trying to look for these people on their own. Um certainly there was a gentleman that was lost a little while ago in the Cannington district. Uh, it was a good four or five hours before police were called. Uh but then as soon as we were called, uh we had that information within minutes to our frontline officers. And within with under two hours' time, we were able to locate him really, really quickly. So those resources are there to be used, they're there to be called upon, and we we just want people to be able to use them more often.
SPEAKER_02And it's really important as well, because in I I would imagine for the family members, they've just they've lost a loved one in terms of physically losing them, they don't know where they are, that can be quite a stressful and and highly um, yeah, highly stressful time for the family. So some information could potentially be missed in in the chaos of trying to locate this person, right?
SPEAKER_12Certainly in an emotional time. And we're not just talking about older Australians, we're talking about younger Australians too, um, people living with autism who are non-verbal. And you've got frantic uh family members out there wanting to do things faster. We can sometimes take that emotion out. Uh, we're fantastic with information uh as WA police. So to have that information there, to be information seekers and getting that information when it's not such an emotional uh environment or situation can be really handy.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, and we're talking about the lost person behaviors before, you know, like for example, someone with uh uh Alzheimer's, they may frequent places that they used to work. Um, so that would provide us with starting points, wouldn't it?
SPEAKER_12Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, um, you know, even just the other day we had a gentleman um who had been moved a couple of different places within the hospital system living with Alzheimer's. Uh, for him, his go-to was to go back to his old home address that he knew from 30 years ago. Uh, and lo and behold, uh, you know, with our police searching and and um knowing that information, that background history, we were able to go to his home address and that's where we found him.
SPEAKER_02Wow. Yeah. It just cuts down that time and and it, I suppose, can be the difference between someone being found and and being able to be returned to their loved ones, you know, in a in a safe manner.
SPEAKER_12Yeah, and in a short period of time, we're coming into the cold season as well, um, where we don't want people to be out uh outside in the elements for for any longer than they have to. But certainly if it gets to the point where it's getting to those evening hours, you you want to try and get on the front foot and find those people quickly.
SPEAKER_02And, you know, this is not a um free initiative, I must say. So are there funding options to assist people if they, you know, in the middle of this cost of living crisis, that if they do want to be part of it but maybe can't afford it at the moment?
SPEAKER_12Yeah, it can be scary to think that it costs something to have that extra layer of protection. Um, but certainly, yes, we do as WO police, we can risk assess any person who's been nominated uh through the Safe and Found initiative to see how we can best help them with the onboarding process. Um certainly uh with our partners Medical Alert, they're the ones that are holding all that information. So yes, there is a cost involved, but we can alleviate some of those for fam uh for friends and family. Um, it certainly doesn't hurt to ask. And this is what I do is I'm looking in, I'm risk assessing people and I'm seeing how we can best help them. Because at the end of the day, we just want to be able to add that added layer of protection uh to take the ease and the burden off of some of those family members. And keep people safe, ultimately. Absolutely, yep.
SPEAKER_03Where should they go if they want more information or if they want to sign up?
SPEAKER_12Oh, yep, you can go to Safe and Found, the actual website. Um, there's a whole heap of information on there. Medicalert has a whole heap of information as well. Um, even if you just Google through WA Police, Safe and Found, you'll get that information there as well. Certainly for people within WA Police, they can email me at the Safe and Found Smail with any uh key bits of information for family members. I'd be happy to make phone calls, get in contact, and let people know how they can sign up.
SPEAKER_03Outstanding. Well, thank you to yourself and to everyone at the emergency operations unit who is the division you're attached to. And um, they're always called into action. You know, you'll see them on the news. They've got the trucks, they've got the land search operations going on. We want to reduce that workload for you guys, and we're hoping that there's a bigger uptake with Safe and Found.
SPEAKER_12That would be amazing. Look, we've got the resources there. We just want to be able to uh help as many people as we can with this initiative. And if we can get that word out to people, then that's fantastic. So thank you so much for having me here. I really do appreciate it.
SPEAKER_03Our pleasure. This is WA Police Confidential.
SPEAKER_02Welcome back to WA Police Confidential. Now, if you've been listening to the last couple of episodes, you would know that we're running something on our socials called Takedown of the Year, People's Choice Awards. Now, we're not out to demean criminals in any way, but the very core of what police do is keeping the community safe. Now that's the priority. And part of that means taking dangerous people off the streets and arresting them. We're here to acknowledge some of those jobs and here to talk takedowns is Taz Eto. Let's say that quickly.
SPEAKER_07No, thanks, Claire. As you said, um, it's not glorifying the arresting process, it's glorifying the coppers that are doing the hard yards out on the road there. And there's been a lot of love on socials um for the takedown of the year segment, and more than 100,000 viewers um tuning in. And um, but it's just coppers going about their business and getting somewhat of recognition and reward for that. And we're going to recognize that at the row awards this year, um, sometime mid-June.
SPEAKER_02Take us through the first takedown of this week.
SPEAKER_07Absolutely. So, this first one, um, and again, what you'll see in media is you won't see the full picture. You'll usually see little snippets, and this is a great example of that. Um a 33-minute pursuit, um, reaching speeds of up to 180 kilometres an hour in a stolen motor vehicle. A crook is driven from uh Quinana Freeway to the Scarborough foreshore, where the driver abandoned the vehicle and was arrested in the water. And the offender was charged with multiple offences, including stealing a car, reckless driving, fail to stop, um, drug possession, and possessing a controlled weapon. Now, um, what you'll see in the footage that you you view is the fact that this is broad daylight, this is middle-of-the-day stuff. This isn't stealing a vehicle at two or three in the morning. This is taking it and driving it at those crazy speeds of 100 kilometres an hour. So what we do see is the danger of community at that time. Um, and you'll be out driving with your family or with friends, with with whoever, and you'll see peanuts like this driving around at these rapid speeds. So it just highlights how dangerous it is and and why these guys need to be captured. Um, it also highlights the multiple business units that you know will be involved in this. So you'll have your general duties, you'll have multiple demons units or detective units like your RAS and your and I think um Merribuca detectives, June Lub detectives, and Perth detectives were all involved as well. Um, as well as K9 and Airwing in the Sky, letting the guys know where to go. So um you'll see on the footage a nice little stroll on on uh Scarborough Beach. Well, this one made it onto the news, didn't it? Yes, it did.
SPEAKER_03Quite well documented uh Prado um down to its rim. Driving down the uh the foreshore uh stairs, um quite close to pedestrians too, might I add. So it's quite a spectacle.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, I think the common theme with it, these three that we've picked today is they've some of them have already gone viral. Um so uh but they they are they have been voted as one of the best for the year, so it's it's it's gonna be good to uh to see the voting for these ones. Um but yeah, multiple business units involved, and um as you see, you'll see the guys you know just throw everything at this guy to get him running on the beach full kit. You're wearing 15 kilos sometimes. Into the surf, too. Into the surf, yeah.
SPEAKER_02I was gonna say we just uh glossed over the fact that he was arrested in the water. Were water police involved?
SPEAKER_07Water police were on standby. Um so another business that were uh were um that were notified. Um luckily they didn't really have to do much because uh the guys jumped in the water, grabbed him out, and once he was detained, they dragged him out and um made sure he was okay uh before charging him with everything. Good result. What what have you got next? Next, we go into another viral one that has been doing the rounds on the on the news as well. Um, Rockin' police respond to a family violence incident. Um uh there was multiple phone calls to the station. Um, the male was located nearby when a runaway dog unexpectedly intervened. And we've seen this dog. We've interviewed the owner. We have. Hopefully, we can get the footage combining because it's it's great to see that, you know, just just how worrisome people get of our canine unit. So, this guy, what happened? He he did a runner from the police. Did a runner from the coppers. He he'd sort of been hassling the missus um a few times, and uh police were aware of it, but this is being the second time that he'd been um sort of pestering and his and his um attitudes and behaviours have been escalating, uh police needed to intervene further and and produ and issue him a 72-hour police order, um just for the safety of of uh of his partner and the presence of children. Um so yeah, so they needed to locate him, which they did, uh, but he was on the run. Uh police were a fair bit behind, but upon seeing a dog who he expected to be canine, he surrendered himself and the coppers are ended up doing a little short chase instead of a big one.
SPEAKER_02And he so if you don't know, it actually wasn't a canine dog, and it was just a dog that got out in the street. Just a lost pup. And um, I think he's uh an honorary member of our canine unit now.
SPEAKER_03He did. He followed, he actually followed the arrested suspect and the officers into the police station for you as well. So he made sure that job was truly completed.
SPEAKER_02Did all the paperwork and everything.
SPEAKER_07No, it's a great result. And it's yeah, just um well done to the coppers, continuing the chase. Um, and again, yeah, just tired. Like if I thought a canine dog was chasing me, I'll probably lay down as well. So I think this crook had had dealings with canine before, hence why he dropped to the floor and um hands were behind his back.
SPEAKER_03Nice. What's your third one you got there test?
SPEAKER_07Yeah, the third one is gonna be a fan favourite, I reckon. It's it's probably one of my personal favourites, it's gonna be well up there. So I'll get through it and um and then we'll we'll have a chat about it. So police observer Black Holden Colorado, which is they recognize as being involved in the earlier incident in Middle Swan. Officers activated license sirens, the draw the driver has failed to stop and accelerated away from police. All right, so already big dramas, you know, putting the public at risk. Uh, the Colorados continued to be driven in an erratic and uh reckless manner through the areas, including Ellenbrook, Henley Brook, and Brabham, during which the Colorado reversed heavily into police into a police vehicle with coppers in it. So this just highlights that um a lot of people run away from danger. Coppers have got to get in there because again, this is as you'll see from this unbelievable footage from Airwing, Airwing have done really well here to capture everything. Um, it's actually super dangerous uh what this guy's doing. Um, but besides the point, the coppers are still trying to bang on the door and and get this guy out because he's he's causing so much risk to the community, there's so much high risk for the community that we just need to grab him. And these coppers here, and I hope we get to name them all because there's a bunch of coppers that keep banging on the door, trying to open it, try to drag him out because just of the the risk of life and death, really, um, to the community. So the vehicle was abandoned before the driver fled and entered a stolen uh Teota Hilux. A second evade has uh commenced and continued through the Brabham, Midvale, and High Wickham areas. Police airwing monitored the Hilux before officers on the ground successfully brought the vehicle to a stop um at Roe Highway and Madeavale and arrested two men in the vehicle. One charged, we'll get through the charges. Have you got the charges there, Sarge? Because it's uh okay. I'll get through them. So we'll get through because they we we basically say they just get charged with everything. Um, but all charges um in this prosecution are uh have significant evidence behind them. Um so it's a great result from those copies. I'll get through the charges before we speak about it a bit more. No authority to drive, reckless driving to escape pursuit by police, endanger life, health, or safety of a person, driver of a vehicle failed to comply with the direction to stop, stolen motor vehicle, driver failing to stop um ensuring property damage, second count of stolen motor vehicle with the second vehicle, uh, stealing charge, possession of solar and unlawfully obtained property, uh, drove with uh forged replica or false plates uh and possessed or acquired ammunition while not being in authorized uh license or permit holder. So there's a very array of charges there.
SPEAKER_02Significant list. Yeah. But I mean, rightly so, if they're putting people at risk, right?
SPEAKER_07Yep, exactly right. And going back to that first one with the evade police, once there's an evade, the amount of business units that jump on just to help out is is really testament to the cops and the work that we're doing. Um, and again, I could go through more, but TRG, Rogue, they're also heavily involved in this one. Airwing obviously did a lot of heavy lifting from the sky because if if someone does get to these speeds of 180 to 200 kilometres an hour, we're not going to be doing all this sort of stuff to chase him because of the dangers could cause to us and the and the person in the car. But um, as you'll see from this footage, he's ramming police cars. There's police cars, there's police officers out trying to open the door, and they're going towards those police officers. So hats off to those guys as well that actually absolutely smashed it. So it looked like something out of a movie. This footage. Bit of Grand Theft Auto.
SPEAKER_03It's a bit of the video game sort of stuff that you'd see.
SPEAKER_07And then you see 25 coppers um huddle around this car to try to get the crook, trying to make sure the car's safe and and all it's just a great result. And yeah, it's going to be up there as one of the favourites, I reckon.
SPEAKER_02And you can check it all out on our socials. Don't forget to vote um for your favourite. The winner, like you said, Taz will be recognised at the Recognition of Excellence Awards uh in June. So jump on, take a look, and vote for your favourite.
SPEAKER_03This is WA Police Confidential.
SPEAKER_10Every year, the Western Australia Police Force sadly has to deal with tens of thousands of calls for help from people who are experiencing family and domestic violence in our community. It's as the Commissioner of Police here, Cole Blanche will often say, it is one of a very small number of crime types that is really on the rise. It's exploding. It's a difficult one to police, but it's so important that we police. And I'm joined today by two people who work very much in this space. Uh Superintendent Andrew Wilson and Dr. Omni O Khan, who is also an assistant director with our culturally You're gonna have to tell me, Doctor, what was the division again?
SPEAKER_08No, cultural engagement and events division.
SPEAKER_10And I only don't know that because that just changed names recently. Yes, but it's very it's a good one.
SPEAKER_08It's supposed to be community engagement.
SPEAKER_10Yeah. Seed. Seed for short. Yes. Um now this is a this is a huge topic, and there's so much that we can talk about. But today specifically, wanted to focus in on our cold community, that's culturally and linguistically diverse community. Because they have some very unique challenges in this family and domestic violence space, which we may refer to at times during this chat as FDV or DV. Um Dr. Why? Why is it so difficult for women in particular from certain backgrounds, certain cultures, uh, to ask for help from police?
SPEAKER_08Firstly, the most common thing is that people, women, don't even know what is family and domestic violence. Okay, it's a good starting point. That's a good starting point. Okay. Exactly. So um maybe uh we should go to Superintendent Wilson to explain what is family and domestic violence.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, um, I suppose to speak. Um, you know, in layman's terms, uh, a lot of people have always assumed that family violence is purely between husband and wife, and that was the extent of it. But it's actually not the case. So uh family violence does extend into children, it extends into the abuse of elders, um, which uh for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community it's 55 years, for uh other people it's 65 years. Um so there's elder abuse, and there is also the capability for extended family members to be involved in family and domestic violence, whether it's adult siblings or even um people who have very close cultural ties, uh, can in some instances um be deemed to be um subject to the family violence. So it's it's actually much broader than a husband and wife.
SPEAKER_10So it's sort of at sort of at the most, I guess, the the most uh fathomable level for people. It's the violence part. It's what uh physical violence.
SPEAKER_06It could be uh there's emotional. Emotional. Uh there's neglect, yep, there's financial abuse, there's psychological abuse, and there's physical abuse, and in some instances, sexual abuse as well. So there's a whole, it's not just physical abuse that constitutes family violence. Okay. So this is what we're talking about now.
SPEAKER_08Yeah. And this is a thing with especially with um people who don't have English as their first language or who are new migrants to Australia or even those who are second and third generation, there are lots and lots of uh factors influencing their reporting and initially their understanding of violence, because in some cultures it is so inherent for um certain roles to be just have to be by uh male-dominated, you know? For example, yeah. So for example, finance. It's mostly men. Even if women are working, their say uh all their uh earnings are going into the same one account which are which is controlled by the husband, husband's account. So they can't take husband or partner, they can't take anything out, they can't even, oh, my husband gives me $50 as pocket money. But what about your own salary? Oh, it goes to our common account, which from which we are paying mortgage and this and this and this, and also sending money home. But what it creates is that barrier where if she is financially dependent on him. Yes. So that's the her that understanding, but it's coming from the culture where it's seen as no mentality. That's normalized. Yeah, where this is normalized.
SPEAKER_10Now, this you mentioned this to me, and this is this is something that shocks me. The people who are generally discouraging women in cold communities from reporting to police, which demographic would you say mostly women. Mostly other women.
SPEAKER_08Yeah. So I and that is really disappointing. And this is what I always say that we see like men are the perpetrators in majority of the cases, but it's the women also who are discouraging them or not supporting them. So one example I was I was discussing with you previously was um recently I read online, a lady had said, My husband has beaten me, taken away my everything, my credit card, all car keys, and thrown me out. I'm sitting outside in the terrace of my home. Children are inside with him. I don't know what to do. Somebody come and get me. She had written it on Facebook in um uh in some community forum. And what people were writing underneath was um replying to her was uh don't leave the house. If you leave the house, you'll never get back in. Uh stay there, uh uh, otherwise you'll lose your children. Uh if you leave, your husband will blame you that maybe you've gone out, gone with some man, so preserve your dignity. So, you know, these were the majority of the comments she was getting, rather than somebody saying, Where are you? What is your location? Or even some other like call the police, call triple zero, call, you know.
SPEAKER_10What what should she have done, do you think, in this insurance from a police officer's perspective, Andrew?
SPEAKER_06Uh well, there's a there's a range of uh, I suppose, options. There is, um, if there's ever any safety concerns, I would always recommend that people call the police, triple zero and triple zero in particular, and let us do our job. Um but there are instances where um women, predominantly women, may not necessarily want a justice outcome. What they want to do is they want the behavior to stop. They don't necessarily want to break up their family, they don't necessarily want to leave their partner, they don't necessarily want to cause the upheaval in their children's lives. What they want is the behavior to stop. Um and early intervention is always the best in that instance. So there are a range of support services available um through the Department of Communities on their website. There's 24-hour hotlines, advice lines, but people can also go to their doctor or a psychologist, medical professionals, they are also um, you know, trained to help people access those support services. So it we don't just because you report um F V to say you're doctor, it doesn't mean that you know the perpetrator is necessarily going to be charged or go to jail. Um so there are a range of options, and we'd always encourage people come forward sooner rather than later and get help, and then you know, allow the system, whichever pathway is best to help you.
SPEAKER_10And and Doctor Sadly, there is sometimes there's there's a really terrible outcome if people do not reach out for that help. Have you have you are you aware of cases where someone for whatever reason, cultural reasons, people being ashamed because of cultural reasons, discouraged from reporting. What what's the worst case scenario here if someone doesn't leave or or s or get help?
SPEAKER_08Worst case scenario we know is very tragic. Many times uh people losing their life and children witnessing that. That's I am aware of a case that happened in our community, and I knew the family, and in that case, uh family violence was not reported, and eventually uh the they lost their mother. And it was a very, very sad uh it was a horrible tragedy, and the and the both oh no, I think a few children, they saw the this happen as well.
SPEAKER_10They saw that that effectively their their mother being murdered.
SPEAKER_08Yes. They saw that they were trying to save their mom and they were not able to do that. So it was very it's very tragic at so many levels. Uh like the help was there, uh there, but it was never, you know, sought or and then the children having to witness something like that, it is there are no words that can express the level of trauma those kids have to live with for the rest of their lives.
SPEAKER_10And and and that really speaks to if there is somebody who's listening and and you find yourself in this situation and you're thinking, well, I I'm staying with this person because of the children, think about that. Think about what that ha your children having to witness that is doing and maybe consider seriously consider reaching out to one of the services that Andrew's mentioned, or or calling police.
SPEAKER_08The thing is that um a lot of shame is attached to it. Uh women are made to feel guilty that you were not strong enough to or smart enough.
SPEAKER_06I suppose in my role, I'm very fortunate that I get to um see a lot of really courageous women who are prepared, one, to say enough's enough, and two, to often retell their story so other people can learn from their experience. It takes huge courage, and I really admire that. Um, one of the consistent themes um that I hear is that uh they still feel guilty. So what I can be very, very clear about it is not your fault. Yeah. Um coercive control, family violence is not acceptable in any circumstances, full stop. It's not okay, and it is certainly not your fault. Um, one of the very consistent themes I also hear is that often there is a person, a friend or a relative that the victim survivors have told. Often it's a very small circle, but the thing that got them through was having somebody say to them, I believe you, I support you. And that is really, really important. So people, because a lot of victim survivors are gaslit, they're manipulated over time. So to have somebody external go, no, I believe you, it's not okay, that's a huge thing. So if somebody listening has a friend or family member that they believe is experiencing family violence, reach out to them, offer your support. It doesn't mean you have to get in you know involved in a fight or a physical disagreement, but offer that support, and that may just be enough for them to think no, enough's enough. Because um, I know in just about all of the stories I've heard, the implications on the children during the relationship were often worse than the implications afterwards. It is usually a happier ending once the domestic violence has stopped.
SPEAKER_08100%. Many times with the uh uh families, when we meet them afterwards, the children actually say this was the b best decision our mom took that day. It was the best decision. Uh living in a conflict uh-ridden home where children are all the time, they don't know what may happen next. I think that's the worst thing we can give um can happen to children.
SPEAKER_02And I think these sorts of examples really give hopefully give some hope to the people out there who are experiencing this. What would be your your message to those people?
SPEAKER_08I would like firstly, I would like to say to the broader community that we have come so quite far in this, in but we need to stop victim blaming. That's the worst thing we can do. So whoever a woman, um because it's in most cases it's a woman, whenever they reach out for help, listen to them. At least listen to them and let uh try to be in their shoes rather than straight away blaming them or saying, no, you can do this, you can do that. And secondly, if a if anybody is deciding to leave a relationship after how many whatever years, they must be doing it for a reason. It can't be nobody wants to live in a shelter, nobody wants to be without finances. It must be a something really pushing them to take that step. So if somebody is taking that step after 20 years, respect it and support them and believe in them, and let them actually um what happens in most cases, uh other people shut them down.
SPEAKER_10I just know that we had this conversation before, and you pointed out that some of the things that I never would have even thought of that's almost like torture that happens in some of these horrible relationships. Yes. The woman that wasn't allowed to to sleep, could you could you tell us what was her circumstance?
SPEAKER_08Because this I don't know the details because I came to know about her through one of our service providers. Um, and she mentioned that that's a horrific case of a woman whose husband does not let her sleep at night. So when she when he comes home and they are about to sleep, she is told to stand against the wall, and that's how she sleeps, she has to sleep all night. That's how she is. There's no she's not allowed to sleep on the bed or lie down. And this is a regular thing. And uh and the service provider, what the thing is, why wouldn't you report this to the police? Why wouldn't you why would you stay with that person? Financial dependence, social dependence, you you fear losing all your support networks if you take that step.
SPEAKER_06And I did hear a a story from one victim survivor uh who wasn't born in Australia, um and very well educated, articulate, wealthy. Um but because the children were used as leverage, and when things started to escalate and she would start to stand up for herself then um her husband would take the family back to their home country um where he would then Physically assault and and a range of other measures because the response to family violence in in the country, which I won't name, um, was a lot less than it would be in Australia, and then would come back to Australia for business purposes and the behaviors would drop off a bit because of our stricter laws and lack of tolerance for DV. Very exactly and the the victim survivor would go with her husband to their home country because she didn't want to leave the children there because she feared that she may uh either lose custody or lose um control of them or not see them again. So that was that was the key.
SPEAKER_10Um are there instances, are there instances where that the home trump country becomes almost like a trap, a prison? Yeah.
SPEAKER_08So what has happened like in some of the cases that we have assisted um uh family violence division as well as coordinated uh with other agency partners as well? Uh similar case where the so we were contacted by a community leader um that there that he has been contacted by somebody in his home country saying that she has been brought by her husband to that country, left with her in-laws, and the husband has come back to Australia with their passports, and the children and her uh stranded there, and she was she feared for her life in being there, and she said that she might be killed over there because of whatever the circumstances were. So, in that case, we uh contacted AFP, Department of Home Affairs, and all you know, organized for her passports to be reissued, and then uh the family um came here, and that's when the Family Violence Division then um helped uh with her, uh, you know, when she got the restraining order. But then when the family arrived here, uh their finances, and then how uh then the uh then we work very closely with the um with the service providers, uh, organize their shelter and all of those things were done. Yeah. So just it's so terrifying. It's just like women have to believe in themselves. And if they look at women who've taken a stand and who are the survivors, they will see that there's much better life ahead for them rather than staying in that relationship.
SPEAKER_10Dr. Khan, Superintendent Andrew Wilson, I really appreciate you both coming on. Um can I just is there so triple zero if you're in fear of your life, or if you're in danger and you need uh urgent assistance and police will come. And obviously, as you mentioned, there are many resources as well. Um, you're not alone. This isn't culture, this is family domestic violence. Don't don't hide behind the fact that violence is violence, it's not cool. Um we're gonna hear from you guys again, I think. Thank you very much. Pleasure.
SPEAKER_08Thank you, thank you very much.
SPEAKER_10You're listening to WA Police Confidential.
SPEAKER_02Take yourself back to what you were doing on Christmas Eve 2025. In a small in this small coastal town of Lancelyn, north of Perth, uh, a man, a family man, has gone missing. And I'm joined by senior constable Claire Lyons, who can tell us a little bit more about that. So tell us a little bit about who Luke Hazelwood is.
SPEAKER_01Thank you for having me here today. And I'm speaking about Luke with the blessing of his family. Uh Luke was 32 years of age at the time of his disappearance. Um, he had been living at an address in uh Yanchet prior to that time. Uh he's described by his family as a real family man. Uh, he is a father, he had a lot of friends, uh, a very close social uh circle. He had been employed uh for a significant duration uh in community-facing roles, and he was said to have a passion for working with children, particularly, um, supporting children with learning difficulties, and usually working uh with schools and also uh privately as well. Uh Luke in the lead up to his disappearance um was described as possibly suffering some uh mental health uh concerns. Um but yeah, described as a as a very loving family man, um always checking in. And uh yeah, his his disappearance was very out of the ordinary and very out of character.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely. And and so Christmas, Christmas Eve, um 2025. So, you know, we're in the middle of summer, and if I recall, it was a very hot Christmas here in Perth. So uh if you take yourself back to that time, what happened on that day in this case?
SPEAKER_01So, in this particular investigation, there are two set of circumstances essentially happening simultaneously, uh, that police later linked as related. Uh, on the 24th of December 2025, we know that Luke's last contact was at 4.17am, where he made a phone call uh to uh one of his family members. Uh he left a voicemail, obviously just due to the time of day, and that was later received uh later that day. That's the last known contact we have from Luke, and nothing about that voicemail indicated uh where he was or what he was doing or what his uh intentions were at the time. Uh now I mentioned the other set of circumstances. So if we go to the 26th of December 2025, so just a couple of days later, uh the Lanceland police were notified of an abandoned marone-coloured Sanyong SUV that was located at the back of the Lanceland Sands Tavern. Uh, Lancelin, for those who haven't been, is a very uh transient town. Uh, it attracts a lot of tourists and seasonal workers. So locating a vehicle of personal belongings there is nothing unusual for the officers there. But they did go conduct a search of the vehicle. There was some personal property that had been left, and amongst that property was some uh items uh labelled with the name of Luke Hazelwood. Uh inquiries at the time did not associate the two, apart from those documents, and again, like I said, there were some various items in there. Um on the 5th of January 2026, uh Luke was reported missing to the WA police uh by an ex-partner uh who hadn't seen or heard from him since the 24th of December. Uh again, Luke being a family man would often uh contact the reporting person to check in. So this was very out of character that there had been no contact for that time.
SPEAKER_02And so just to confirm, the car that was abandoned initially is just sort of treated as an abandoned vehicle, right? And it wasn't his vehicle, is that correct?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's right. So the Lansell and police conducted some inquiries into that vehicle, and uh apart from the name documents that were in there, there was nothing to indicate at that time that the person was in need of assistance. We couldn't work out whether it was broken down or the circumstances around it being left there. We knew that it had been hired by somebody, um, and uh but then possibly borrowed by friends of friends. Uh and that was how the association to Luke came about some days later.
SPEAKER_02And so that's obviously all forming part of the investigation. So he's reported missing on the 5th of January. Yes. And so that um that time frame obviously is you know a busy period and Christmas, New Year's for everybody. Um but it comes to police attention from the 5th of January. What what sort of steps do you take in those initial investigations um to try and find where he is?
SPEAKER_01So we knew we had multiple um points of inquiry, I guess you could say, for the investigation. Um obviously we've we'd linked the car to Luke by that time. Um, we wanted to explain or be able to explain why he had travelled there and if he had any intentions once he arrived there. So an investigation was launched uh at that at that location that included extensive searches with the support of the emergency operations group who assisted with uh mapping and search efforts. Uh, we conducted multiple proof-of-life checks in the background um through banking phone um records, uh etc. And uh the last known contact still stood at the 24th of December 2025, uh following those inquiries. We also uh canvassed uh uh family and friends because they are the ones that knew No Luke the best, um, to see what his intentions may have been or what if there was any link to Lancelin. Uh and following those inquiries, we couldn't come up with an an explanation as to why he possibly had travelled there. Um, and the main point from following canvassing all those witnesses was that this behaviour was out of character for him at the time.
SPEAKER_02And so obviously uh a massive uh land search is conducted and um you know it was quite I don't cast your mind back to that time, it was uh broadcasting the media as well, and uh we had sort of all avenues trying to find where Luke was. Um from there, what what where do you go to from there when you've done all the land search, you've done the boots on the ground stuff, where to from there?
SPEAKER_01So we continued with the search effort um and we extended the search effort based on any further information that we gathered. Uh, there has been an extensive public awareness campaign canvassing for information as well. So all of that information comes through to us uh and we follow up with with all those uh lines of inquiry. Unfortunately, at this time, they've been found to not be relevant or not have be Luke or been negated as being Luke, and we will continue with that. We will continue with all that of our proof of life checks, um, etc. banking, and once we exhaust all those lines of inquiry.
SPEAKER_02And so I you've obviously mentioned at the beginning of this that uh this um podcast discussion has been um, I guess, given consent from Luke's family. Uh you've been in touch with them. What has this sort of uh what impact has this had on his family, his disappearance?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you're right. So uh originally the investigation sat with the Lansell and Police, but it's recently been passed over to the missing persons team, which is where my uh role comes in. Um, and we take over that family liaison role as well, supporting the family uh moving forward and what that looks like for them. And again, explaining that the main point from everyone we've spoken to is that Luke was uh was a family man and he was very close to his friends. So they obviously are are feeling devastated by his his disappearance, and there's a lot of questions that still remain unanswered. Um that but we'll continue to follow up on any information that we do receive in relation to the disappearance of Luke.
SPEAKER_02And and I suppose that's why we are here discussing these missing people because they're not just cases for for the missing person's unit, they're not just numbers, it's not just a figure, it's it's a real person and and their family are really feeling the impact.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's right. It's it's such a personal thing. And I think the main point to raise with these cases is that there are a lot of questions that are not answered. We would like to give answers to the families in regards to what has happened to their loved ones. Um, so yeah, just to give them some and support in the interim is the main goal for us.
SPEAKER_02And obviously, you know, there is a $500,000 reward for any long-term missing people. And um, you know, if people do have information that relates to this that can assist, um, would you encourage them to come forward?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and that's why we continue with our public awareness efforts, and this podcast is included in that. Um, they can report anonymously through Crime Stoppers if they wish, or again, uh calling the police on 131444 with any information, and we would encourage them to come forward.
SPEAKER_02Is there anything else you'd like to add?
SPEAKER_01That's all. Thanks.
SPEAKER_02Thanks for joining us. Thank you so much.
SPEAKER_00All units, the WA police force is looking for people, all kinds of people, people in a tank, in the community, into formal driving, dumb people, and horse people, people who like women, good bugs, planes, helicopters, and bullets, people who are big on community, helping others and solving true economy, not just working in ordinary people who are up for doing extraordinary things.
SPEAKER_09If you can be one of these people, you've found your people. So much let's join forces.
SPEAKER_03It's that time of the week once again uh for the news headlines. Claire, what's been happening?
SPEAKER_02Well, we've had a pretty big couple of days, um, particularly on our roads. So last week was National Road Safety Week, but sadly the weekend and the past week has actually been pretty horrific on our roads. So we've had almost a dozen serious and fatal crashes just in the last week. Um terrible. Yeah, it's pretty sad. So we're really urging drivers. The message is still the same, just really take care on the roads. Um, you know, in the midst of all of those serious and fatal crashes, we also had a an incident of reckless driving, reports of reckless driving down at Ocean Reef Marina as well. So it just beggars belief, but um, yeah, really take care behind the wheel. Definitely. Meanwhile, uh child abuse squad and homicide squad detectives have been investigating an incident uh which occurred back in May, uh May the 2nd. Uh so a baby just eight weeks old sustained some very serious injuries. Um, and sadly, that baby passed away. Um, and a 23-year-old man from Inalu has been charged with murder. So that is uh one that homicide squad and child abuse squad have been working diligently away at since um the 2nd of May.
SPEAKER_03Well, our history fact for the week. Last week we asked, How old must you be to run a country station in Western Australia? Claire, I believe you've got some answers.
SPEAKER_02I do. So today, most of our police recruits are around about in their mid-20s, but back in the 1860s, it was actually very different. Some were already leading entire districts before that age. So um it's quite remarkable. William Finlay is one example of that. He arrived in Western Australia from Ireland. Uh, you know, name a more Irish name. I don't know if you can. Um, he arrived on a convict ship in 1850, just 10 years old at the time, along with his father, who was a convict guard. By 18, he joined WA Police and rapidly proved himself fearless, sharp, and highly capable. At just 20 years old, he was already in charge of Vass Police Station, which is now known as Busselton. Um, and by his 21st birthday, he was a sergeant commanding the vast Champion Bay District, what we now know as Geralton. So it's pretty remarkable, but his meteoric rise didn't stop there. By 25, he was just he was one of just five subinspectors in the entire force in charge of all of Albany.
SPEAKER_03Wow.
SPEAKER_02Which is pretty remarkable. Um, but his unstoppable career was cut short, not by failure, but by economic cuts actually in 1878. But rather than stepping down, he walked away and resigned at just 38 years old.
SPEAKER_03Wow. That's an interesting career and a quite a story, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02He yes, he um he ended up staying in Albany, becoming its first mayor in 1885. A year later, he passed away at just 46. But his funeral was the largest the town had ever witnessed at the time.
SPEAKER_03He'd achieved a lot in such a short space of time.
SPEAKER_02And next week, our history fact. So the WA Police Force is 173 years old, but one of its most glamorous units is even older. So if you have any guesses over the next week, stay tuned and find out the answer next week on WA Police Confidential.
SPEAKER_05Pop played pipes in the Highland band. Nana dance the Highland blink. It's tiptoe, they settled in Australia beneath the outback sun. With a wee bit of Scotland in the pictures, they all play pipes and drums.
SPEAKER_02WA Police Confidential was produced by Joe Garris, Danny Vandeveer, Lisa Evans, and Sam Oo. Sound editing by Joe and Danny and Sam. Cover song by the WA Police Pipe Band, and cheesy podcast theme music by Joey Catanzaro. By the way, why just listen to a podcast about policing when you could actually be doing it? Let's join forces.wa.gov.au
