A law enforcement review in Australia has found Police in Sydney asked a young woman to remove her tampon during a strip-search.
BBC News reports it was among instances of police misconduct uncovered in an investigation into five controversial strip-searches across Sydney last year.
The report said most took place at music festivals and left those searched feeling humiliated and degraded.
New South Wales Police said it would consider the findings of the report.
The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission report called on the police force to apologise to one of the young women involved and noted in another case that an officer had been suspended from duty.
The cases were reviewed either after parents of the women complained or they received coverage in local media.
The report said questions over the legality of the searches - all targeting drugs - was a "recurring" issue.
It has added to public scrutiny of searching practices and calls for reforms.
In one instance in January 2019, police strip-searched two young women outside a Sydney casino - one was asked by an officer to remove her tampon.
A review of that incident "revealed a lack of clarity for [officers] regarding the lawfulness of such a request".
[Source: BBC]
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