Policing Australia: The Official Podcast of the Australian Police Journal

What’s it like to arrive at the scene of a major terrorist attack in which scores of people have died or been seriously injured? Or to lead the Australian contingent in an international operation to rescue boys trapped in a network of flooding caves? Or to discover that a colleague is corrupt and actively working against you in an organised crime investigation?

Glen McEwen OAM KCD experienced the above and much more in a 35-year police career in Australia, Asia and Europe. Glen’s memoirs – Crime, Chaos and Controversy – will be released in late October 2026. It tells the story of a suburban boy who struggled at school, learned a trade, joined the police and become a detective, surveillance operative, liaison officer and senior commander. Glen spent his career investigating and directing operations against transnational organised crime, terrorism, people smuggling, corruption and cybercrime. 

In the lead-up to the release of his book, Glen chatted to Policing Australia about some of his more memorable experiences. It’s a fascinating insight into a remarkable career.

For more information about the APJ, go to www.apjl.com.au. Click on the SUBSCRIBE button at the website to get exclusive access to the future and past issues of the magazine.

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guest: Glen McEwen OAM KCD 

APJ Editor Simon Bouda and Deputy Editor Gerard Dutton join host Jason Byrnes to discuss a significant anniversary for the magazine. The first issue of the APJ was released in October 1946; 321 issues later, the publication continues to play an important role in educating and informing police and others about important policing and community safety issues.

Topics discussed by Simon, Gerard and Jason include the strengths of the APJ, how aspiring authors can get their ideas converted into published articles, and the future of the publication. 

Contact the APJ at [email protected] if you have an idea for an article or future story for the podcast. Additional information can be found at www.apjl.com.au. 

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guests: Simon Bouda AM and Gerard Dutton

Website: www.apjl.com.au 

Contact: [email protected] 

International partnerships are critical for improving the effectiveness of policing and law enforcement, especially in the Pacific. More effective policing across the region leads to safer communities and an increased potential ability to combat transnational and serious organised crimes such fraud, environmental crime and the smuggling of illicit drugs and people.

For decades, Australia and New Zealand have played an important role in assisting and working alongside Pacific islands police, with a view to building Pacific policing capabilities and security. In recent years China has also established and then increased its policing presence in several Pacific island countries.

In this episode, Virginia Comolli and Martin Thorley from the non-government think tank, Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), discuss why China is expanding its policing presence, the types of initiatives Chinese police are engaged in, and point to lessons for other international actors.

Virginia and Martin’s report – Policing Partnerships in the Pacific: China’s Law Enforcement Cooperation with Pacific Island Countries – can be accessed through GI-TOC’s website at https://globalinitiative.net/analysis/policing-partnerships-in-the-pacific-china/

The APJ’s website is www.apjl.com.au

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guests: Virginia Comolli and Martin Thorley

What’s it like to police a community crippled by a violent insurgency? 

Hear from former policeman Don Urquhart who served with the Royal Ulster Constabulary in the 1970s during the height of 'The Troubles'—the late 20th Century period of horrid violence in Northern Ireland. Don recalls what policing was like for officers who came from and lived within a community either afraid or unwilling to cooperate with the constabulary. It’s an eye-opening account of the challenges of policing by consent in a ruthlessly violent society.

Don’s article—Troubling Times: The Royal Ulster Constabulary in ‘The Troubles’—is in the June 2026 edition of the APJ. If you aren’t already a subscriber to the APJ, go to www.apjl.com.au and click the subscribe button. Through the website, subscribers have access to 300+ issues of the APJ, extending back to the 1940s.

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guest: Don Urquhart

Discover in this episode the types of duties search and rescue police undertake in Tasmania. Damian Bidgood served with Tasmania Police for 32 years, and for almost all of that time, he undertook search and rescue duties on land, on-and-under water, and in the air. He is the recipient of bravery awards and commendations for his actions, issued by Tasmania Police, the Royal Life Saving Authority, and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. 

In this episode Damian talks about his experiences and career, including discussing some more notable search and rescue incidents he attended, including helicopter, cave and marine rescues.

Damian’s recent article about his career—When Seconds Count: Search and Rescue in the Wilds of Tasmania—is in the June 2026 edition of the APJ. The article and the whole magazine can be read online at www.apjl.com.au. Go to the website to take out a subscription for Australia’s pre-eminent true crime and policing publication. 

Host: Jason Byrnes

Guest: Damian Bidgood

The availability of illicit tobacco in Australia has reached plague proportions, with organised crime involving itself in the smuggling and distribution of the product. 

And here’s the strange part – the situation is the result of a public health policy success story!

This episode looks at the nature and scale of the problem as well as examines how policing the so-called heroin drought at the turn of the century might present some lessons for today’s law enforcement agencies.

The three articles are discussed in the episode are:

• ‘Tobacco Wars: An Australian Perspective’, written by Detective Inspector Rohan Best, which can be read at www.apjl.com.au/tobacco-wars/
• ‘Dual-edged benefits of drug policing: A quarter century’s lesson from a heroin drought’ is published in the Journal of Law and Economics, and can be accessed at  It can be accessed at https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/jle/vol69/iss1/4/
• ‘As Australia’s tobacco wars continue, a NSW heroin drought in 2000 might offer lessons’, can be read at https://theconversation.com/as-australias-tobacco-wars-continue-a-nsw-heroin-drought-in-2000-might-offer-lessons-274537

Host: Jason Byrnes

Guests: Sergey Alexeev, Rohan Best and Dr Don Weatherburn 

Visit www.apjl.com.au to learn more and subscribe.

What would be the challenges facing Australian police, should Australia find itself involved in an existential war for national survival? 

The globe is currently experiencing intense geo-strategic rivalries and changing international norms. The Australian Government has described this era as being the most complex set of strategic circumstances since the end of the Second World War. War isn't certain, but many nations (including Australia) are currently building up their military capabilities and equipment levels, just in case.

This episode looks at Australian policing during the Second World War, and of Ukrainian policing in that nation's current defensive war against Russia, to identify what wartime policing could look like. Given the nature of modern war - especially  the use of long range missiles, drones as well as acts of sabotage to cause civilian chaos - Australian police could find themselves effectively in the front lines. Further, police operations in wartime are likely to be impacted by societal anxieties, staffing availability and issues surrounding the reliability of equipment. Professionalism, innovation, resilience and dedication to service, will be critical for the policing of a nation at war.

The article that forms the basis of this episode -Total War: A Police Perspective - is in the March 2026 edition of the APJ. For more information, go to www.apjl.com.au. 

Host: Gerard Dutton

Interviewee: Jason Byrnes APM

Former prosecutor, Supreme Court justice and anti-corruption commissioner John McKechnie AO KC, talks to host Jason Byrnes about his life and distinguished career. Over the course of five decades John has been involved in numerous high profile criminal cases, as well as hundreds of lesser-known matters that nonetheless impacted victims of crime and their families. In the conversation John includes observations of the legal system, the scourge of domestic violence, policing and the authenticity (or otherwise) of legal TV shows. 

John’s book – My Life in Crime: A tapestry of cases – is published by Upswell Publishing. Those wanting to purchase the book can obtain a 10% discount if they purchase it at www.upswellpublishing.com, and use the coupon code: 10%OFF

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guest: John McKechnie AO KC

The book review of My Life in Crime can be read at www.apjl.com.au

Distinguished crime reporter and author Janet Fife-Yeomans talks about some of the more interesting cases she covered during her career, and the books she has written about serial killers, sudden deaths, murderers and rapists. 

Janet, the daughter of a policeman, started her career in England before migrating to Australia. She worked for newspapers in Western Australia and then in New South Wales. Cases touched on in this conversation include the death of musician Michael Hutchens, the Port Arthur Massacre and the horrendous goings on in the Chelmsford Hospital where psychiatric patients were maliciously killed while being treated. 

Janet also provides her thoughts on police/media engagement, as well as insight into some of her books regarding serial killers and coronial investigations. Recently, Janet has begun writing for the APJ and her articles are discussed.

If you have an idea for a future episode of Policing Australia, drop us a line at [email protected] 

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guest: Janet Fife-Yeomans

Hear from the lead investigator of Strike Force Reddan, the investigation into the so-called 'Family Law Court Bombings' - a crimewave which saw four people murdered and many others badly wounded in a series of shootings, bombings and an attempted bombing. Several buildings were destroyed or damaged in the attacks. Strike Force Reddan resulted in the arrest and conviction of the offender, who later died of natural causes while serving his sentence.

In the podcast Detective Inspector Mathieu Russell of the New South Wales Police Force talks about key aspects of the investigation and court case, and reflects on the challenges facing police - both at the time the offences occurred in the 1980s, and more recently with Strike Force Reddan which was a cold-case investigation utilising modern forensic and information management technology.

The podcast episode complements the feature article about the investigation that appeared in the June 2025 edition of the APJ.

To subscribe to the APJ, go to www.apjl.com.au and click on the subscribe button. Alternatively, contact the APJ office at [email protected] or +61 (0)2 9285 3399.

Host: Jason Byrnes APM

Guest: Detective Inspector Mathieu Russell