Magistrate Michael Barko questions whether music was ‘sh*t’ at Listen Out music festival after Conor Foskin, Jason Naidu busted with drugs

A magistrate has questioned if “the music was sh-t” at a Sydney festival, wondering why a series of men had to sneak illicit substances in to enjoy the event.

Police with drug detection dogs at the Listen Out Music festival, where Conor Foskin (inset) was busted. Pictures: Jeremy Piper, Tileah Dobson

A magistrate has questioned if “the music was shit” at a Sydney festival after three men were caught sneaking drugs into the event, hiding the illicit substances in places that included their underwear and socks.

“I’m assuming the music was shit. Was it shit?” magistrate Michael Barko asked the third man in Waverley Local Court on Wednesday.

“Because you, for some reason needed, to take drugs to enjoy it.”

Mr Barko asked that question of Coogee resident Conor Foskin, who escaped conviction after pleading guilty to possessing a prohibited drug.

Documents tendered to the court state Foskin, 28, walked past officers and a drug detection dog at the popular Listen Out music festival, which was held in Centennial Park on October 6.

The dog detected drugs near Foskin, prompting officers to stop the Irish national and move him to a nearby fence.

As police questioned him, a “sweating and nervous” Foskin admitted to carrying MDMA in his sock, where officers found five capsules weighing a combined 0.91g.

Connor Foskin leaves Waverley Local Court on Wednesday. Picture: Tileah Dobson

Mr Barko ultimately sentenced Foskin to a 12-month conditional release order.

One of the other cases involved 31-year-old Jason Naidu, who also escaped conviction after pleading guilty to two counts of possessing a prohibited drug.

Documents tendered to the court state Naidu was walking near the entrance to the music festival at 4.45pm, when he alerted drug detection dog Lotus.

Lotus smelt drugs near the Kogarah resident, who admitted carrying MDMA “down the back of his underpants”.

Naidu later confessed to also having cocaine on him, telling officers the 0.87g of that drug, and the 0.8g of MDMA, were for personal use.

Police charged 16 people with drug possession at this year’s Listen Out Music festival. Picture: NewsWire / Jeremy Piper

Mr Barko slammed Naidu for carrying drugs to a music festival, which police described in court documents as a hotspot for illicit substances.

“(You) couldn’t get enough vibes out of the music, couldn’t get enough vibes from the legalised drinks … you take one of these pills, you snort the wrong cocaine and you’re dead,” he told Naidu.

“We used to enjoy ourselves without having to take drugs … do you know why the drug dogs are the happiest and fittest in the world? Because they come to the eastern suburbs. They get a treat, a tennis ball for (finding drugs).
“The arrogance and the naiveties and the stupidity is that ‘I’ll walk past this drug dog and no one will know because it’s in my underpants’.”

Waverley Local Court, where the cases were heard.

Naidu was sentenced to a 12-month conditional release order.

A NSW Police spokesman told this masthead officers had charged 16 people with possessing a prohibited drug at this year’s Listen Out festival, while four were charged with supply offences and 23 people issued criminal infringement notices.

The cases follow the release of shocking figures that revealed paramedics had to take close to 600 music festival attendees to NSW hospitals in the space of five years.

Despite the huge dip in the number of events held during the Covid-19 pandemic, a total of 573 people were taken to hospital between 2018/19 and 2022/23, with 135 needing “urgent transport” and 81 admitted to intensive care units.

The overall number of hospitalisations during that period included 344 “likely” drug-related cases.