In a damning indictment of ACT Policing, the Commonwealth and ACT Ombudsman, Iain Anderson, has exposed an unlawful search, unconscious bias, and officers failing their "duty of care" towards an Aboriginal teenager who was misidentified and arrested at gunpoint on a public bus.
The watchdog's report, titled It's not him, also found a lack of communication between police officers about who had command, cumulative delays and misinformation, as well as missed opportunities to identify the actual offender.
Speaking on 17-year-old Jay's* arrest on November 11, 2025, when he boarded a Transport Canberra bus in Woden, Mr Anderson said the innocent boy deserved "great credit" for his complete compliance during a terrifying and confusing situation.
