Five women sexually assaulted at Tasmania’s Falls Festival, police say

POLICE are investigating five sexual assaults on women, including one rape, at the year-ending Tasmanian Falls Festival.

POLICE are investigating if a serial sex pest is behind five sexual assaults on women, including one rape, at the year-ending Tasmanian Falls Festival.

Five women have reported varying levels of assault at the annual Marion Bay New Year’s Eve festival, which was held from December 20 to 31, 2016.

The alleged rape occurred at a campsite between 9.30pm and 11.30pm on the first day of the music festival, while four other women have told police they were sexually assaulted in the mosh pit during the three day event.

It is the latest blow for the organisers of the annual New Year’s Eve event, which has simultaneous festivals in Lorne, in Victoria and Byron Bay, in New South Wales.

Controversy plagued the hugely popular event, with 19 people hospitalised with serious injuries after a crowd crush at the Lorne event.

Tasmania Police Inspector Doug Rossiter urged women to remain vigilant on day three of Falls Festival, after three sexual assaults were reported. Picture: Luke Bowden

On New Year’s Eve, Tasmanian police urged women attending to the festival to remain vigilant, and to remain in groups, where possible, after three reported sexual assaults in the first two days.

In the same time period as Thursday night’s alleged rape, a young woman was sexually assaulted in the mosh pit, while watching DJ Hot Tub Time Machine.

The following day, at 2pm, another young woman was assaulted in the mosh pit, while video footage subsequently provided to police from festival goers has revealed two further women were also attacked.

Police believe there could be more victims and have urged others to contact them to report any attacks.

Detective Inspector Steve Burk urged any victims not to dismiss the crime due to a belief that inappropriate touching is par for the course in the mosh pit.

“It’s quite clear that the general belief of a lot of young people is that being inappropriately touched by someone else is what happens in the mosh pit,” he said.

“My view is if you’re not comfortable treating women like that in the middle of the mall you don’t treat them like that in the middle of the mosh pit either.”

Festival goers at the Tasmanian event. Picture: Kane Young

Comment has been sought from Falls Festival organisers.

Festival co-producer Jessica Ducrou made a lengthy post addressing the Lorne crowd crush on the event’s Facebook page but is yet to comment on the Marion Bay sexual assaults.

In relation to the Lorne incident, she said the organisers were “completely devastated”.

“With over 20 years of experience running festivals behind us, we are completely devastated by the crowd crush that occurred with patrons exiting The Grand Theatre, and we are beyond shattered that a number of our festival patrons were injured and impacted by this event,” she wrote on January 1.

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Originally published as Five women sexually assaulted at Tasmania’s Falls Festival, police say