THE amount of people caught attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into Bunbury’s Groovin the Moo festival increased from 13 last year to 36 at Sunday’s event.
Police laid a total of 50 charges during the 12-hour festival, including 39 move-on notices for poor behaviour and eight charges of possession of prohibited drugs with intent to sell and supply.
The most significant seizure will see a 20-year-old man from Yokine face charges after he was allegedly caught with 65 LSD tabs.
“People still seem to be trying to bring stuff in despite our warnings – there were a few more people with LSD which is a bit more uncommon, as well as pills, cannabis and powders,” Sergeant Matt Leishman said.
“Some people tried to disguise the smell with coffee but that doesn’t work and some were bringing large amounts in and claiming it was for personal use – our dog picked up a bag of 30 on one guy.
“Our mission was clear – reduce the impact of street drinking and crack down on drug distribution and antisocial behaviour and I think we achieved those goals.”
Sergeant Leishman said police used their Twitter account to put out warnings to revellers, warning them not to ruin their festival experience by breaking the law.
A video recorded on a mobile phone circulated on social media showing about 50 people rushing the festival barrier and jumping in without paying.
Sergeant Leishman said there seemed to be a culture of fence-jumping at festivals across the country and police would meet with organisers this week to discuss strategies for future events.
Property lost at the event with a South West ID will be handed to the Bunbury Police Station.
All other items will be taken back to Sunset Events HQ in Fremantle and will be held for a month.
Contact property@sunsetevents.com.au or 9336 2837.
