NT Police media has suppressed that knives were used in two different public attacks on Territory women, resulting in both of them ending up in hospital because of their wounds, in statements that came in the week following the NT Independent revealing the government installed a marketing manager who gives strategic advice on the “Territory master brand” to decide on what crime is reported and how it it is done.

The move to usurp the NT Police media unit with a marketing manager was exclusively revealed by the NT Independent last week, and comes as the Fyles Government struggles to deal with crime, and the public perception of it, particularity knife crime, with at least three very public stabbing deaths in the Territory this year.

There was also the tragic death of Bangladeshi student Ishaqur Rahman, who was rushed to hospital by housemates after being bludgeoned in his bed by an unknown intruder.

The NT Police Association president Nathan Finn said it created the “perception of political interference”, something he said he would talk to Chief Minister Natasha Fyles about.

Police media manager Margaret McKeown said in a statement on Monday police were treating an attack in Katherine as an act of domestic violence, with a 27-year-old woman arrested at the scene. The woman has since been charged by detectives with unlawfully causing serious harm.

There was no mentioned of a weapon being used at all.

But the statement said the 31-year-old female victim had lacerations to her upper body from the attack which happened about 6:10pm on Friday, at the Low Level Reserve, in the Cossack area of Katherine.

Ms McKeown said the victim was taken to Royal Darwin Hospital in a serious condition to undergo emergency surgery, and remained in hospital.

However when the NT News reported the attack on Saturday, after talking to Northern Watch Commander David Allan, as a ‘knife attack at the town’s Low Level Nature Reserve’.

He said the victim suffered “significant injuries to her back”.

One experienced police source told the NT Independent they had never heard of lacerations so bad that they required emergency surgery, not being caused by some kind of sharp weapon.

In another police statement on Monday afternoon Ms McKeown said a 32-year-old man was a charged with a breach of a domestic violence order and related violence offences, after being arrested nearby after police were called to a “disturbance at a service station” on McMinn St, Darwin, about 10pm Friday night.

“Upon emergency services arrival, a 30-year-old female was located nearby, with lacerations to her back.The victim was conveyed to Royal Darwin Hospital, where she received medical treatment and was released a short time later,” the statement said.

However on Saturday the NT News, also reporting on the information from the watch commander, said the woman was taken to hospital for treatment for suspected knife wounds.“We attended there and have located a female suffering pretty significant injuries to her back and her arm,” he was quoted as saying.

The NT Police media unit did not respond to questions, including if the use of a weapon was purposely suppressed in the statements.

Another police sources last week told the NT Independent NT Police will still allow journalists to call watch commanders early each morning about crime, and let the detail be used so they look like they are being transparent. The thinking is that if is used in radio broadcasts less people will hear it than when it is used in digital text articles because of their ability to be shared expansively through social media.

Such as with the Action for Alice Facebook page, which had a large national, and international readership.

While outlets such as the NT News do get some information on a small amount of crime from the watch commander, and press conferences about the most serious and public crime, the majority of information about crime provided to the media, either comes from press releases or limited emailed statements from the NT Police media unit. And these are more controlled and generally provide less details than telephone conversations with a watch commander.

The marketing manager who gives advice on the “Territory master brand” and controls crime reporting

Last week the NT Independent, revealed through information from well placed sources, that a marketing manager who gives strategic advice on the “Territory master brand” to the Chief Minister’s department, was installed by an unknown person to help decide what crimes are reported to the public, usurping the NT Police media unit.

But the police force and the Fyles Government refuse to say who created the secretive new role and why.

Sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told the NT Independent the unadvertised new role was filled by Sita Bacher, who works in the Department of Chief Minister and Cabinet, and who describes herself on Linkedin as a senior marketing and digital manager.

Her spiel on her Linkedin biography states: “The team I lead provide strategic marketing advice and services for NT government agencies, whole of government campaigns, major projects and the Territory master brand”.

The sources told the NT Independent the media unit no longer receives any of that information in the first instance, going instead to Ms Bacher for communication strategy determination with the executive.

Ms Bacher did not respond to questions nor did Chief Minister Natasha Fyles, Police Minister Kate Worden, or acting Police Commissioner Michael Murphy.

Last week NTPA president Nathan Finn said he was due to meet with Ms Fyles and he would talk about what was happening.

“The NTPA president Nathan Finn is due to meet with Chief Minister Natasha Fyles and will raise this issue, particularly around the perception of political interference, with her directly,” they union said in a statement.

There have been three crime rallies in Darwin this year, all of which followed violent deaths.

Earlier last week, Samara Laverty, the mother of teen Declan Laverty who was one of the three people stabbed to death this year, penned an open letter to Ms Fyles on Facebook where she called the Chief Minister out for “minimising and downplaying” Declan’s death, while failing to keep the community safe, which Ms Laverty said was “an absolute disgrace”.

“You have consistently denied the existence of knife and other crime in the NT,” she wrote. “The buck stops with you.”

In late January, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was forced to make a last-minute visit to Alice Springs due to growing political pressure to hold meetings with community groups and police about the ongoing crime crisis that had exploded as a national issue in the days leading up to his visit, while Ms Fyles was forced to announce new alcohol restrictions as a result of the visit.

If you, or anyone you know is a victim of domestic or family violence, please contact 131 444 or in an emergency call triple zero. You can also anonymously report through Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.