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A new taskforce has been announced today to coordinate a whole-of-service response to unlawful and violent activity of criminal street gangs in South East Queensland.

Taskforce Uniform Knot was established on February 14 to address an increase in unlawful activity by criminal street gangs, including serious personal violence offences, property offences, weapon offences, serious fraud offences and public disturbances.

Taskforce Commander Detective Superintendent Brendan Smith said intervention and prevention strategies would form part of the taskforce’s focus, along with coordinating operational policing responses to surge resources where and when needed to reduce harm to the community.

“The taskforce will be acting and building on existing intelligence, which shows the offending involves a small cohort that identify as part of criminal street gangs, who are from diverse backgrounds and range in age from early teens to mid-twenties,” Detective Superintendent Smith said.

“We know the underlying drivers of these crimes are complex including social disadvantage and disengagement. This cohort of youths are drawn together for various reasons and at times are involved in serious crimes. It is this behaviour we need to address collectively.

“Police and community partnerships are fundamental for societal crime prevention and fostering a conducive society which is why the taskforce is taking a coordinated and collaborative approach and considering a range of prevention and deterrent measures including for those at risk of joining these criminal street gangs, along with exit pathways for those wanting to leave.

“Some of the crimes we’re seeing are opportunistic crimes or inter-gang crimes, therefore the taskforce is committed to responding to this unacceptable and unsafe behaviour before it escalates any further.”

The Taskforce will work with police districts, partner agencies, community organisations and leaders and members of the public to deter and respond to offending.

Led by the Organised Crime Gangs Group, the taskforce includes representatives from Brisbane, Southern and South Eastern Regions, First Nations and Multicultural Affairs Unit and the Youth Justice Unit. This provides pathways to change offender behaviour through external partners.

The Taskforce defines a criminal street gang as: any durable, street-oriented youth group, encompassing teenagers and young adults, whose involvement in illegal activity is part of its group identity.