Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre, Brisbane

The Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre was a military facility in Indooroopilly composed of three brick and timber cell blocks with a total of 15 cells. The compound also included guard rooms and support buildings that sustained the entire interrogation operation.

The facility operated between 1942 and 1943 as Australia's first purpose-built interrogation center for Japanese prisoners of war during World War II. It became part of the military effort in the South-West Pacific and supported Allied intelligence operations.

The center employed Japanese American linguists who used their language skills to gather information through conversation rather than coercion. Their work relied on direct communication with detainees.

The site is located on Lambert Road and the original buildings remain visible on the grounds today. Visitors should approach this location as a serious historical site and show appropriate respect for what took place there.

The linguists working here were nisei, second-generation Americans with Japanese heritage, who were brought in to support the war effort despite their American background. Their presence shows how the United States had to cross cultural boundaries during the war to gather intelligence.

Location: Queensland

Address: 9 Lambert Road, Indooroopilly

GPS coordinates: -27.50452,152.97545

Latest update: December 14, 2025 14:44