Five per cent of Wadeye's population in jail following months of violence, unrest, according to NT Police Commissioner
Key points:
Jamie Chalker says about five per cent of Wadeye 2,000 residents is currently is prison
A police officer and Wadeye man were injured in more violence last night
A local Aboriginal corporation is running a new mediation program to try and work through long-running disputes
"We've had to make arrests where people are going to a local hardware store and stealing axes and other types of improvised weapons and storing them to ultimately get out there.
As part of a four-week operation beginning in October, police roadblocks were set up to crack down on alcohol being smuggled into the dry community.
"We had significant road interdictions [with officers] seizing upwards of 20 one litre bottles of rum [at a time]," Commissioner Chalker said.
"I picked this up from my recent visit to Wadeye [that] bottles rum are selling for $500."
Police officer injured, man assaulted with axe this week
Since the police roadblocks were removed, Thamarurr Development Corporation chief executive, Scott McIntyre, said he believed alcohol-fuelled violence had increased again.
"[The operation] had a big impact on reducing the amount of alcohol coming into the community," he said.
"Since Operation Tarn finished and the roadblock has been lifted we've seen an increase in alcohol coming back in.
"There was a couple of days where people said there was a lot of alcohol, a lot of drunk people, a lot of disturbances."
On Friday police reported that a man had been wounded in the leg by an alleged assault with an axe on Thursday night.
Police said a group of people allegedly threw rocks at officers when they were called to the scene.
They said a female police officer was hit in the forehead with a rock. Both she and the injured man were treated at the local clinic.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-12-09/nt-wadeye-violence-prison-five-percent-po...