Inside Look: How AFP officers prepare for a search warrant

Editor's note: Vision of clearance house available via Hightail

The AFP has provided an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at a new training simulation house where police prepare and train for search warrants located inside AFP Melbourne Headquarters.

This advanced training facility, known as the 'clearance house', spans two floors and features 12 multi-purpose rooms designed to replicate real-life training scenarios for officers to help them to prepare for search warrants and other operational activity out in the field.

The specially constructed rooms can adapt to simulate homes, apartments, businesses, office spaces, or any environment where police would conduct search warrants in real-life.

The AFP execute hundreds of search warrants across Australia each year, highlighting the importance of this specialised training.

The clearance house is imperative to police training to ensure search warrants are conducted in a coordinated, effective, and safe manner. Officers use the facility to plan for tactical activities, rehearse methods of entry - whether planned or unplanned- and prepare for potential risks such as clandestine labs or properties housing explosives.

AFP Sergeant Roger Watts said a number of specialist police capabilities also undertook training in the clearance house to ensure all AFP members were prepared for working out in the field.

'Specialist capabilities like Crime Scenes, Imagery and Geomatics, Canine, Digital Forensics, Bomb Appraisal, Criminal Asset Confiscation and Police Tactical teams all play important roles in the planning, execution, and post-execution stages of a search warrant," Sergeant Watts said.

"A search warrant can be a high-pressure situation for both law enforcement and members of the public and thorough preparation and training is critical to ensure the safety of everyone involved.

"Training scenarios are designed to prepare officers for any situation they may encounter during a search warrant including individuals armed with firearms or weapons, police or civilians suffering injuries, damage incurred on the premises, attempts made by individuals to flee or to destroy evidence, and even aggressive animals on the premises."

Sergeant Roger Watts said the main purpose of a search warrant was to locate, preserve, and seize evidence in a timely and safe manner.

"During a search warrant, police may seize large sums of money, weapons, explosives, documents, electronic devices, and illicit drugs, and require safety protocols to ensure everyone on the premises is safe when doing so," Sergeant Watts.

"The clearance house has been designed with public safety in mind and by simulating potential threats in a controlled environment, the AFP can better prepare our officers when challenged in real-life situations."