Police are calling for calm as tensions over crime reach boiling point in central Queensland.
On Sunday, a group of people marched on the homes of alleged offenders, on one occasion chasing a person down the street, following an anti-crime rally in Rockhampton.
Former One Nation candidate and Rockhampton kickboxing gym owner Torin O'Brien organised the rally after an alleged break-in at a relative's home, with around 100 people gathering to hear him speak at a public park.
Capricornia District Superintendent Glen Pointing said after the rally, about 60 people moved to the front yards of various homes in the Rockhampton suburbs of Norman Gardens and Berserker.
Police issued move-on directions to 15 people and no-one was injured.
"Whilst we understand … appreciate and empathise with the victims of crime, I want to strongly impress upon people — taking the law into your own hands is fraught with danger," Superintendent Pointing said.
Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll echoed those sentiments, saying it was dangerous to rely on information shared via social media.
"Some of the information is quite wrong, the stuff on social media is pure speculation," Commissioner Carroll said.
"What you see on social media feeding some of this, it's not evidence ... [these people] need to be careful, what we'll end up with is a death — it may happen."
Youth justice experts and youth advocates say they are extremely concerned about vigilante behaviour, while some victims of crime argue incidents such as the rally in Rockhampton are a product of frustrations not being addressed.
Community frustrations
According to Queensland Police crime data, 12,533 offences were committed across the Capricornia region in the past six months, up about 5 per cent from 11,959 in the six months prior.
It was a similar story across the state, with criminal offences jumping by more than 11 per cent in Queensland in the six months to March, compared to the six months previous.
Those statistics are of no surprise to Yeppoon business owner Anne Fursman, whose sports store has been broken into five times in the past 10 months.
Ms Fursman has installed stone bollards in front of the property to prevent ram raids, and said her annual insurance premium doubled in September, increasing from $8,000 to $16,000.
"We don't feel like we're being heard, we don't feel like there's real any action," she said.
Though she did not attend the rally in Rockhampton on Sunday, she was in support of the meeting, and said she was not alone in her frustrations.
But for local business owner and human rights advocate Zhanae Dodd, the public taking crime "into their own hands" is a scary and harmful response to a complex social issue.
The Ghungalu, Birri, Widi/Wiri and Kaanju woman said she had noticed tension building in the community for months.
"Reacting to crime, with essentially crime — it's not a peaceful protest no matter what anyone says," she said.
"If you're finding the addresses of these people turning up to their houses, in mobs with the intention to hurt someone … you're obviously there with the intent of violence."
We live 'under the rule of law'
Working with disengaged youth, Ms Dodd said "nothing good" would come from vigilante action.
"It's not actually looking at what is the deeper issue that's going to fix our crime problem long-term, and create a safe community for everybody," Ms Dodd said.
"We know that it's a wider social issue, so that can be things like housing, socio-economic development, how the youth justice system works, health, education.
"I think that this group is angry — and they have a right to be angry — but aren't considering all those elements, before jumping into action."
Ross Homel, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at Griffith University, agreed vigilante behaviour was dangerous.
"It's outside the law, potentially very dangerous, illegal and not actually going to the causes," he said.
"We give police responsibility, and we live under the rule of law, not under the rule of the mob … mobs can get it wrong."
Professor Homel said while he understood the frustration people were feeling, there were more productive ways to take action, like getting involved with on-the-ground community partnerships.
"[These groups could] join forces with people who are working to try and ensure that these kids, particularly at a young age, get the help they need," he said.
