Tributes for Glenn Mcrae after death at Strawberry Fields festival

A 24-year-old who died from a suspected overdose at Strawberry Fields music festival in NSW has been remembered as “sweet and funny” man as police reveal 96 were arrested at the event for drug offences.

• Man dies at Strawberry Fields festival

Family and friends of a man who died at the Strawberry Fields festival have remembered him as “sweet and funny” as police revealed 96 people were arrested for drug offences at the event.

Glenn Mcrae, 24, overdosed on multiple drugs at the electronic music event at Tocumwal in the NSW Riverina about 2am on Sunday after he was taken to the festival’s medical tent.

NSW Police said he had taken a “cocktail of drugs” including MDMA, cocaine and psychoactive GHB.

Glenn Mcrae.

“Glenn you were the most funniest, sweetest person I know,” Neha Singh posted on Facebook.

“You were basically my older brother and because of you we brought a great group of people together.

“Our family isn’t going to be the same without you but we will always cherish the memories we had with you.”

It’s understood Mr Mcrae was originally from Sydney, went to school in Maroochydore and was living in Melbourne.

Another friend, Vincent Bose said he was left “heartbroken”.

“Losing someone I called a brother was definitely the hardest thing I’ve had to endure in my lifetime,” he said.

It’s understood the Victorian had taken a “cocktail of drugs” including MDMA, cocaine and psychoactive GHB.

He died about 2am on Sunday.

“Countless nights we had with the crew getting up to no good and all the memories we all shared and made were most definitely the best times of my life.”

Police made more than 70 drug detections at the Tocumwal event, including a man who was found with 75 MDMA tablets, cocaine and speed. The 22 year old man was charged with supply prohibited drug and three counts of possess prohibited drug.

Police laid 69 charges and issued 11 Drug Infringement Notices across the 9,500 festival goers.

In the wake of Mr Mcrae’s death, Premier Gladys Berejiklian refused to change her stance against pill testing at festivals.

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Ms Berejiklian said she had reviewed the findings from Deputy State Coroner Harriet Grahame, who investigated the deaths of six people who died at NSW music festivals between December 2017 and January 2019, and believed pill testing “would not have saved their lives”.

Friends paid tribute to Mr Mcrae as a “sweet and funny” man.

This is despite Ms Grahame recommending pill testing in her final report, which was handed down last month, along with scrapping the use of sniffer dogs at music festivals, limiting strip searches and a drug summit to consider decriminalising the personal use of illicit drugs.

“In five out of the six (cases) it was pure ecstasy and in the sixth case, it was a combination of another drug cocaine and ecstasy – pill testing would not have saved those lives,” Ms Berejiklian said this morning.

“It was the pure drugs that killed these young people.”

“There’s no doubt governments across Australia need to do everything we can to protect lives and save lives – but let’s not make the situation worse.”

“We actually believe (pill testing) could actually cause more deaths by giving people a false sense of security.”

However, Ms Berejiklian was supportive of a suggestion by NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller to put drug amnesty bins before festival gates to allow revellers to dispose of their drugs before reaching sniffer dogs.

“I think that’s a really good idea and the government’s been discussing options like that,” she said.

“We want to do everything we can to get the message out that we want young people to think twice before they take something that can kill them.”

Originally published as Tributes for Glenn Mcrae after death at Strawberry Fields festival