Azure, the harbourside party that is famous for being the most eagerly anticipated dance party event of the Mardi Gras season, was shutdown on Sunday night by police following 26 arrests that resulted in over 40 drug charges being laid. Following a raid by officers and drug detection dogs, where police found partygoers in possession of MDMA, cocaine, ketamine, speed, crystal meth, GBH and cannabis, police, out of concern for the remaining 5000 predominantly gay people attending, sought permission from a magistrate to close down the party. The event was then shut down at 9pm, minutes into the final DJ set. Forty charges involving drug supply and possession were laid against those arrested, with nine of those people allegedly detected with trafficable amounts of illicit drugs.
Police said the raid was part of an operation targeting drug use and supply in the Rocks Local Area Command. Police have defended their actions, despite officers being accused of heavy-handed and discriminatory behaviour directed towards the gay community. One attendee told reporters that the number of police and dogs was unprecedented and unwarranted. He queried why police closed down the party early while allowing other events, such as Good Vibrations, where three people were arrested on drug charges, to continue. "We take drug dogs down there annually. It was not a specially planned operation to uproot the Mardi Gras or upset the gays. It was just the blatant quantity of drugs [we found]," said one officer involved in the raids.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Lunchtime O'Booze
