Dealer who supplied Joshua Tam drugs could face 20 years jail under new laws

The drug peddler who sold festival-goer Joshua Tam the pills that may have killed him could be the first person jailed for 20 years under the state’s tough new drug laws. One MP has now signalled a policy shift in favour of pill testing at festivals.

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The drug peddler who sold festival-goer Joshua Tam the pills that may have killed him could be the first person jailed for 20 years under the state’s tough new drug laws.

Police yesterday quizzed friends of the 22-year-old, checked his social media and mobile phone records in a bid to track down his dealer.

Mr Tam died at the Lost Paradise festival on the Central Coast on Saturday night after allegedly taking a cocktail of MDMA and alcohol.

It comes as friends pay tribute to “one of the greats” and more than 20,000 people descend on the Domain for the annual Field Day music festival which starts today.

Joshua Tam, 22, died at the Lost Paradise Festival on the Central Coast on Saturday. Picture: Facebook

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The organisers of that festival, events company Fuzzy, refused to speak about their preparations last night, instead directed The Daily Telegraph to a Facebook post.

“Because illegal drugs are uncontrolled by authorities and at this stage drug testing is still illegal in NSW, you can’t know the strength or composition of any illegal drugs you are sold or given,” the Fuzzy post reads.

NSW Labor leader Michael Daley this week signalled a policy shift in favour of pill testing at festivals. “Just saying no is not the answer,” he said. “Pill testing should not be off the table.”

But NSW treasurer and father of five Dominic Perrottet warned that could cost more young lives: “Pill testing is not a silver bullet.”

NSW Opposition Leader Michael Daley said pill testing should not be off the table. Picture: AAP Image/Dylan Coker

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet argues it could cost more lives. Picture: AAP Image/Erik Anderson

The change in policy would effectively allow for the “full decriminalisation of all drugs in NSW” and give a green-light to dealers,” he added.

“How can we tell our kids on one hand not to take drugs while in the next minute tell them the drugs they take can be checked by the government?”

But Queensland’s Health Minister Steven Miles said their state government would consider findings from the Groovin the Moo music festival in Canberra last year, where people could test the purity and strength of pills.

Queensland Health Minister Steven Miles would consider testing the purity and strength of pills at festivals. Picture: AAP Image/John Gass

Despite Tam’s death, many of those heading to Field Day said they would change plans.

One young woman said last night: “Look, I’m sure there’s a bunch of people going to do (drugs). You can definitely tell when people are on them — I think mainly these days it’s MDMA or coke. I just drink until I’m feeling jiggly.”

The NSW Premier introduced a 20-year prison term for dealers caught selling fatal pills after two revellers died at the Defqon.1 in September.

“Drug dealers who play with people’s lives are warned they risk being locked up for many, many years,” the Premier said.

She added: “The drug peddler who was responsible for this tragic death faces up to 20 years in jail under our tough new laws.”

Tam’s death at Lost Paradise is the fourth death at a dance festival in NSW this year. Picture: Twitter/@lostparadiseau

Police yesterday issued another 28 court attendances for drug possession at the Lost Paradise festival and issued a stark warning to revellers attending today’s Field Day festival in the Domain.

Police Operation Commander, Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Bell said the message needs to get through.

“We repeat these warnings every year and will continue to prioritise the safety and wellbeing of all festival-goers. “We want Field Day 2019 to be an incident-free event.”

Tam is the fourth young festival goer to die after taking drugs at NSW music festivals this summer.

In Victoria yesterday a man in his 20s was flown to the Royal Melbourne hospital following a drug overdose at the sold out Beyond The Valley festival in Gippsland.