A TikTok video boasted of a next-level grand prix stunt. Two teens have now been charged
In front of the track of one of Australia’s biggest motor racing events, two teenagers wearing yellow high-vis vests and red lanyards stand, looking rather important. “The crowd did not question us one bit,” one of them boasts in a video seen by thousands on TikTok.
Later, they’re at a VIP suite. “But to be honest, we felt like we could do better,” the same man says in the video.
The camera follows the pair – their hoods pulled up from under their vests and one of them holding a megaphone – to the Australian Grand Prix’s Red Bull Energy Station, where a three-day ticket costs $7000.
“We managed to walk straight in, claiming [to staff] people had run through,” the voice says, showing the purported interaction with a staff member. The camera then moves to the Red Bull Station’s balcony, where the teens joined racing fans in watching Lando Norris’ victory at Albert Park.
“As fake security, we had the freedom to do whatever we wanted, so we checked out a few spots only we could make it to,” the voice says in the TikTok, from the account Trissy Pranks.
Many TikTok users applauded the teens’ stunt, but there was also concerns that they had, by virtue of posting the stunt online, sold themselves out to authorities.
A screengrab of a video posted to TikTok allegedly showing two men impersonating security guards at the grand prix
The concerns seem to have been validated on Thursday when Victoria Police charged two 18-year-old men – one from South Melbourne and one from Albert Park – over alleged security breaches at the grand prix on March 16.
Detectives allege the pair impersonated security guards to attend the event and that videos shared to social media show them accessing areas off limits to the general public.
Police raided homes in Albert Park and South Melbourne on Wednesday, seizing electronic devices. The South Melbourne man was arrested during the raid, while the other handed himself in to a police station.
“They have both been charged with several offences under both the Crimes Act and the Major Events Act,” a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
“The South Melbourne man has been charged with [10] offences, including obtain financial advantage by deception, make false document and trespass.
“The Albert Park man has been charged with seven offences, including obtain financial advantage by deception, make false document and trespass.”
A screengrab of a TikTok video allegedly showing two men posing as security guards at the grand prix
The two men were granted bail and are due to face Melbourne Magistrates Court on June 13.
Police are still searching for two alleged co-offenders.
In the Trissy Pranks video, a voice says they want to take things to a “whole other level”.
“Originally, we planned to get in, dump our vests and watch the race at the general admission area, but we decided to take it to a whole other level,” they say.
The TikTok video has since been deleted.
Police urged anyone with more information about the alleged security breaches to come forward.
Our Breaking News Alert will notify you of significant breaking news when it happens. Get it here.