An Indigenous boy with an intellectual impairment was kept "completely naked" for days inside Brisbane's adult maximum-security police watch house after being deemed a suicide risk.

Key points: Last month, Four Corners revealed that children were being held in adult watch houses, with one being placed in isolation for 23 days

Last month, Four Corners revealed that children were being held in adult watch houses, with one being placed in isolation for 23 days The boy, who was stripped of his clothes, had both a neurodevelopmental disability and foetal alcohol spectrum disorder

The boy, who was stripped of his clothes, had both a neurodevelopmental disability and foetal alcohol spectrum disorder He did not want to wear an anti-suicide smock, which looks like a dress, "due to feelings of shame"

An officer from the Queensland Department of Child Safety raised "high concerns" for the boy and asked for help to get the police to provide him some clothes.

Documents obtained by the ABC under Right to Information reveal that three or four watch house officers pinned the boy down to undress him so that they could place him in a "suicide smock" — a garment difficult to tear.

But the boy resisted after complaining about being put in a "dress".

After being stripped he was left naked in a cell with only a blanket to cover himself with.

An anti-suicide smock used in the Queensland prison system. ( ABC News: David Sciasci )

"We're absolutely outraged that a child with a disability, a child with suicidal ideation, has been left naked in a cell for three days," said Frances Quan Farrant, from People With Disability Australia.

Got a confidential news tip? Email ABC Investigations at investigations@abc.net.au For more sensitive information: Text message the investigations team using the Signal app +61 436 369 072

Text message the investigations team using the Signal app Text message Mark Willacy using the Signal app +61 477 714 805 No system is 100 per cent secure, but the Signal app can protect your identity by using end-to-end encryption. Please read the terms and conditions of the app to work out if it is the best method of communication for you.

"This is abhorrent, and it's a gross violation of this child."

Last month Four Corners reported that some children were being held in watch houses for weeks on end, with one placed in isolation for 23 days.

The program also highlighted several cases of 10-year-olds being held in the adult facilities, as well as incidents of children attempting suicide.

The files revealed that a girl had been mistakenly placed in a holding area with two alleged male sex offenders, while another girl had part of her finger severed in a watch house door.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 43 minutes 30 seconds 43 m Inside the Watch House ( Four Corners )

Child stripped naked 'yelling and screaming the whole time'

The Brisbane watch house is a maximum-security holding cell for adults, including inmates accused of murder, rape and paedophilia.

Hundreds of children, most of whom are on remand and have not yet been convicted, have been kept in Queensland's watch houses in recent years due to a lack of beds at the state's youth detention centres.

Documents written by the Office of the Public Guardian reveal the boy stripped of his clothes had both a neurodevelopmental disability and foetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Detained at the watch house from the end of March, the boy — believed to be 17 years old — told his child safety officer he was feeling mentally unwell.

The documents state that the officer told the Queensland police that the boy had expressed "suicidal ideation".

Disability advocate Frances Quan Farrant labels the boy's treatment "absolutely vile". ( ABC News: David Sciasci )

In response he was taken to a padded cell where officers requested that he put on a suicide smock, which the boy refused to wear.

"Subsequently three or four male officers held [him] down and undressed him … and [he] was yelling and screaming the whole time," the document states.

Police procedure is to clothe prisoners at risk of self-harm in a so-called suicide smock.

"Absolutely vile. This is a restrictive practice. And as a disabled person's organisation, we are completely against all forms of restrictive practice. This is a violation of this child's human rights," Ms Farrant said.

Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington says the Premier has not overseen a "full investigation" into children in watch houses. ( AAP: Samantha Manchee )

The boy later told his child safety officer that he didn't want to wear the smock "due to feelings of shame" and after being stripped naked he was left in a cell with other children for four days.

"[He] reported that he only has a blanket to wrap around himself," the documents state.

"I actually just cannot believe it, that a child has been stripped naked and left naked for four days," Queensland Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington said.

"I really don't care what this kid has done, but he should not be treated like that."

The Queensland Police Service (QPS) did not answer a list of questions about the boy's case, instead telling the ABC that it "holds the safety and wellbeing of people in its custody as a paramount priority".

The Office of the Public Guardian later wrote to the Department of Child Safety, Youth and Women to complain that holding the boy in the watch house had distressed him and resulted in a decline in his mental health.

It asked for "urgent advice" on when the boy could be transferred to a youth detention centre, and for additional options for mental health interventions.

During the time the boy was left naked with only a blanket, the youth detention centre was down by at least 20 beds because it was being refurbished.

A spokeswoman for Child Safety Minister Di Farmer said the boy "threatened self -harm and was given a smock to wear for his own safety".

"He was later assessed and found to be able to wear ordinary clothing," she said.

Loading...

Allegations Queensland Premier 'misled Parliament'

The day after the Four Corners watch house story aired last month, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told Parliament that all new matters raised by the program would be "fully investigated".

The Department of Premier and Cabinet's acting director-general, Rachel Hunter, was in charge of looking into the issues highlighted by Four Corners.

But the ABC can reveal that only a limited investigation took place and it did not deal with the systemic failures raised in the program.

A spokesman for the Premier's office confirmed that only one incident — involving the severing of the girl's finger inside the watch house — was referred to the QPS.

The QPS confirmed its Ethical Standards Command conducted a review but "did not identify any breach of discipline or misconduct on the part of any police officer".

A police source told the ABC that the Queensland Government was "trying to hang police out to dry" over the issue of children being held in watch houses.

The Opposition Leader said the Premier "has misled the parliament" over the Government's investigation.

"The Premier stood up in Parliament, from a question from the Opposition, and said she would have a full investigation into this matter. That was over a month ago," Ms Frecklington said.

"The issues are still happening. It is clear the Premier has not had a full investigation into this matter."

Police issue second statement

After the ABC broke the story, the QPS issued a second statement.

"Inquiries indicate the juvenile was not naked and remained clothed throughout, but chose to wear the garment as a sarong for a period of time instead of in the traditional way," a QPS spokesperson said.