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Australia · Victoria · Lara, Victoria

Barwon Prison

State maximum-securityMaximummaleUnder capacity (93%)LowHigh
Verified 20 May 2026 · Data dated 1 Apr 2024
Fresh · 9d ago

Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.

For families

How to send mail, money, and visit Barwon Prison

Step-by-step guidance using the Australia system — addresses, money services, visit booking, what to bring on your first visit.

Open toolkit

Victoria's principal maximum-security prison. Houses the Acacia high-security unit for the most-restricted inmates.

Capacity

540

Current population

500

Occupancy

93%

Year opened

1990

Operational

Facility profile

Operator

Corrections Victoria

Population held

male

Opened

1990

Region

Victoria

Security level

Maximum

Death-row facility

No

Conditions

Acacia unit uses prolonged in-cell restriction for inmates designated as high-risk.

Visiting

Visit application via Corrections Victoria portal. Photo ID required.

Mailing

Inmate Name & CRN, Barwon Prison, Bacchus Marsh Road, Lara VIC 3214, Australia.

Practical info

Family Liaison Officers available to support new visitors.

Known issues

Ongoing scrutiny of Acacia unit conditions for terror-convict inmates.

Notable inmates

Carl Williams (deceased 2010), Tony Mokbel (transferred 2024), Robert Farquharson.

Contact & address

Bacchus Marsh Road, Lara, Victoria 3214

Conditions Risk Score

Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated

5/100
Low concern5/100
Overcrowding
0/30
Oversight reports
0/30
Structural flags
0/15
Death signals
5/15
Conditions text
0/10

What the score is responding to:

  • · In-custody-death signal in sources

Compared to other facilities in Australia

231 peers
Conditions risk scorethis: 5/100 · peers avg: 5/100 (+0%)

Higher risk than 0% of peer facilities in Australia.

Occupancythis: 93% · peers avg: 98% (6%)
Capacity (beds)this: 540 · peers avg: 540 (+0%)

Data completeness

100%

How many of our profile fields are populated. We surface this so families and researchers know the limits.

Sources