Taxpayers will foot the close-to- $12 million damages bill caused at Melbourne Metropolitan Remand Centre after prisoners rampaged in response to the state’s July 1 smoking bans.
“The current estimate of the damage is $10 to $12 million,” a government spokesman said. “We expect to have an accurate estimate of the final cost in late August.”
Prisoners had not been able to buy cigarettes at the prison canteen since June 12, which is understood to have caused tension between those with tobacco and those without.
The 15-hour siege ended when police with tear gas and riot gear, along with dog squad members, were deployed.
Star Weekly understands prisoners accessed the personal information of several staff members during the riots.
At the time, Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Leane said the siege was a difficult and dangerous operation, much of it conducted in darkness.
Three staff members suffered minor injuries but not as a result of their interaction with prisoners, Assistant Commissioner Leane said.
Four prisoners were taken to nearby Port Phillip Prison for hospital treatment with dog bite wounds, while another sustained a suspected broken jaw.
A government spokesman said no riots had broken out since. But last Tuesday, the Country Fire Authority and Metropolitan Fire Brigade were called to the centre when a small fire was ignited in a cell.
The fire was quickly controlled.
