Rainbow Serpent festival organisers told to clean up act or face ban
The notorious Rainbow Serpent will be banned unless organisers stamp out “significant drug use” at the event, police have warned, as young drug dealers busted there have been told their youth and lack of criminal history would not be “get out of jail free” cards.
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Police have warned organisers of the notorious Rainbow Serpent festival that they must stamp out the “significant drug use” at the event or it will be banned.
Young drug dealers busted there were warned in court their youth and lack of criminal history would not be “get out of jail free” cards.
Several traffickers aged in their teens and early 20s took turns pleading guilty to charges at Ballarat Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, and more will appear later this week.
RAINBOW SERPENT MARRED BY SEX ATTACKS
SUSPECTED OVERDOSES AT RAINBOW SERPENT FESTIVAL
SURGE IN ILLICIT USE OF KETAMINE
The force has slammed the Australia Day weekend festival for brazen drug dealing, seven drug overdoses, two sex assaults and violent attacks on revellers and on police.
Superintendent Jenny Wilson said the event had been “hijacked” by drug fiends, and it would not be allowed to continue as is.
“The significant drug use is concerning,” she said. “Any event where so many people are impacted, we want to get assurances future events will be run differently.”
The Herald Sun understands police will send a bill of up to $80,000 to event organisers. Supt Wilson said the drug trafficking charges did not reflect the extent of dealing at the event, attended by about 16,000 people at Lexton near Ballarat.
Ten people were charged with drug trafficking, 54 were caught with drugs, and 16 tested positive for drug driving.
“Some of the 54 people with drugs had them prepared for sale but we didn’t have enough evidence to charge them,” said Supt Wilson.
She added some festival-goers became significantly more violent towards police members as the event went on.
“At the start of the event the heat kept the crowd mellow, but that changed and they became more aggressive toward police,” she said.
“A couple of times members were surrounded by revellers and had beer bottles thrown at them. One member was also injured in a scuffle involving a drug trafficking matter.”
Supt Wilson also blamed drugs for four violent assaults, including two sexual assaults on women by strangers.
At least 60 uniformed officers attended the four-day event consuming 240 shifts.
Officers were also deployed from Melbourne, including the operations support unit, which could further bump up the bill.
A young woman is continuing her fight for life at The Alfred hospital after a suspected drug overdose at the festival.
Members of her family were flying in from the UK to be at her bedside.
The housemate of the victim slammed the festival as “negligent” and questioned its duty of care toward revellers, in light of its history of overdose deaths. There have been two deaths from drug use at the festival since 2011.
Another patron revealed large groups who travelled to the festival via bus were not checked for drugs or weapons, adding to security concerns.
Ketamine, MDMA, GHB, methamphetamine, cocaine, cannabis, LSD, ecstasy, diazapan and steroids were among the drugs seized.
Seventeen people were hospitalised over the course of the festival, including seven for suspected drug overdoses.
Of the seven, four were deemed critically injured.
Rainbow Serpent spokesman Tim Harvey refused to answer questions from the Herald Sun regarding the future of the event and claims of negligence.
The festival generates about $6.3 million in ticket sales.
PRISON THREAT FOR YOUNG DRUG DEALERS
Young drug traffickers busted at Rainbow Serpent music festival have been warned their youth and lack of criminal records will not act as “get out of jail free” cards.
Several dealers aged in their teens and early 20s took turns pleading guilty to charges at Ballarat Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday and more will appear later this week.
Magistrate Gregory Robinson said there was “somewhat of a pattern of young people being used to supply these drugs at festivals”.
He said in multiple cases they had no prior criminal record.
“Whether or not that is by design of the criminal gangs who supply the drugs, I’m left to speculate,” he said.
But Magistrate Robinson said jail terms would be considered to send a strong message of deterrence to would-be drug pushers who think they can get away with it.
“I don’t think that can be achieved by a community corrections order alone.
“Indeed, that could well become a selling point to those who seek to enlist young people to distribute their drugs, to say, don’t worry, with your lack of criminal history you won’t be sent to jail. I think the message should be, if you are going to deal drugs you will go to jail,” he said.
The message came as 23-year-old Kurtis Smith was sentenced to three months’ prison and placed on a 24-month community corrections order for trafficking ketamine and ecstasy at the festival.
Smith, from Edithvale, wiped tears from his eyes as his emotional father watched on from the gallery.
Earlier, his father had given evidence saying he and his wife had “absolute disdain for these music festivals” because of their culture of attracting rampant drug use.
“I understand the community fear and anger about it, because I’m part of that. (My son) was caught doing something ridiculously stupid. He’s done the wrong thing and he’s got to wear it,” the father said.
Fellow accused festival trafficker Loughlan Deburg, 20, from Malvern East, was denied bail on Tuesday and will remain in custody until his next appearance on March 25.
The court heard Mr Deburg was caught after a foot chase by two plainclothes police officers, who allegedly saw him conducting a deal.
His attempted getaway ended with multiple ziplock bags with pills and powder allegedly spilling from his backpack.
Max Hayes, 19, from Ringwood, will reappear on Wednesday after going through a youth justice centre pre-sentence assessment.
He pleaded guilty to trafficking ketamine and amphetamine.
Zac Mangion, a 21-year-old apprentice boilermaker from Morwell, walked from court on Tuesday after evidence his offending was of a lower category.
He pleaded guilty to trafficking ketamine, however Magistrate Robinson said Mr Mangion had not gone to the festival with the intention of selling drugs but had instead been caught in the act offloading some of his personal supply in an “opportunistic” moment when asked if he was selling.
He was placed on an 18-month community corrections order.
Wearing board shorts and a T-shirt, and with no shoes on, he said, “Yep, no worries,” as he was told of the conditions he had to comply with for the corrections order.