Man, 22, interrogated and strip searched at festival after chewing gum mix-up
An infuriated Sydney man has claimed an attempt to freshen his breath led to his $130 festival ticket being revoked.
Giammarco Celani, 22, was heading to hardstyle music festival Midnight Mafia at Sydney Showground on May 11 when he and a group of friends stopped off for a few beers at a nearby pub.
“There was a few of us at the local pub, which is about a 15 minute walk to the venue,” he told Yahoo News Australia.
“We had a couple of beers before heading over.”
But as he and his friends, about 20 of them, lined up to enter the event, Mr Celani was singled out almost immediately.
“A police officer grabs me by the arm and links arms with me as he drags me away,” he claimed
“He said: ‘Mate you’re chewing your face off, we’re going to have to search you’.”
Mr Celani claimed the officer’s suggestions he had taken illicit substances was due to a misunderstanding over the gum he was chewing.
“I pulled out my gum and told him I’m chewing gum but he said ‘you’re obviously under the influence’.”
Mr Celani, from Greenacre, said officers took him aside and after interrogating him, said they needed to strip search him.
“I was really eager to get into the festival so I was like ‘lets do this’,” he said.
But after finding nothing on him, Mr Celani, who works in sales for a software company, said a supervising officer told him he wouldn’t be allowed into the venue.
“He said ‘I’m still going to void your ticket because I believe you’re under the influence’.”
The festival-goer, who categorically denies taking any illicit substances before the event, said the officer told him his pupils were dilated, to which he told them he was “nervous” as it’s not everyday you get strip searched.
Yet even more infuriating for Mr Celani was that he claimed another officer approached him and said because he had been “cooperative”, he was allowed to purchase another ticket to re-enter.
While he took the officer up on the offer and purchased a new ticket at the cost of $150, he said the decision had left him “pissed off”.
“If they thought I was under the influence why would they let me back in?
“I’m happy to get strip searched [if necessary] but I think its ridiculous to void my ticket and then to allow me to go back in.”
He said the incident, which took about 45 minutes, had tainted the day for him, not just because he was left out of pocket.
“I was missing one of my favourite DJs and for that to happen in front of 20 of my mates, it’s just embarrassing,” he said.
“Apparently it’s now illegal to chew gum at a festival.”
Strong police presence at Midnight Mafia
A NSW Police spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia that if Mr Celani had his ticket cancelled by an officer solely based on not finding any drugs, this would have been against protocol.
“Tickets are not automatically rescinded at the conclusion of a search,” the spokesperson said.
They added that if an attendee is believed to have either taken or are carrying illicit drugs, it is a prompt to search that individual.
Yet if that search proves fruitless, the person subjected to the check is allowed to enter the venue if deemed not to be showing signs of intoxication.
“If drugs are suspected, that is enough reason to be searched, however, if nothing is found then typically that person would enter the venue as planned.”
Midnight Mafia’s entry conditions state anyone showing signs of intoxication can be refused entry to the event.
NSW Police did not comment further on the matter.
NSW Police revealed 272 people were searched at the event, resulting in 32 people being arrested and charged with drug possession.
During the event, 165 people sought medical treatment with nine people taken to hospital by NSW Ambulance paramedics for further treatment, six of those for drug-related health issues.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian’s decision to increase police presence and tighten security at festivals following a spate of drug-related deaths has faced resistance from large sections of younger generations while her reluctance to offer pill testing at events has angered many.
Ms Berejiklian previously said pill testing gave drug users "a false sense of security".
"I hear what some people are saying but as a premier, as the leader of NSW, my job is to keep the community safe," she said.
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