Putting An End To Dodgy Security Training

Private security workers are supposed to be given 128 hours training – but Victoria Police’s Licencing and Regulation Division recently uncovered a Harkaway man whose business was instead accepting exorbitant fees in exchange for two-day “fast tracked” courses.

Rather than subjecting its students to rigorous exams, the company would simply hand around answer sheets to copy from.

Police were tipped off to the dodgy arrangements and charged the business owner with a raft of offences following a thorough investigation.

On Monday [11 September], a 59-year-old Harkaway man who ran a private security training company pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court to two counts of failing to comply with his licencing conditions and another offence under the Private Security Act.

He was convicted and fined $6000.

Victoria Police work closely with our private security partners who help us keep Victorians safe and secure.

That’s why it is a priority for police to ensure that every person working in the private security industry is appropriately trained and licensed.

Part of this work includes ensuring dodgy operators are charged and put before the courts.

The Licencing and Regulation Division, which is responsible for assessing applications on behalf of the Chief Commissioner, refused over 260 applications from people who received qualifications from the Harkaway man’s company during the period in question.