A man has been charged after allegedly grabbing a woman’s breast in a mosh pit at the Falls music festival in Tasmania.
The 32-year-old from Carlton has been charged with assault with indecent intent over the incident at the Marion Bay main stage around 9.30pm on New Year’s Eve.
The man was apprehended by victim and her friend before they performed a citizen’s arrest.
A second young woman has been sexually assaulted at the Falls Festival in Tasmania. Pictured is the festival in Byron Bay
A teenager has reported being sexually assaulted in a music festival mosh pit, after the same event was marred by similar attacks last year (pictured is the Falls Festival)
The 19-year-old woman was allegedly assaulted by an unknown man during a set by The Jungle Giants (pictured) at the Marion Bay musical festival at 9:30pm on Friday
‘The women involved, the person involved and her friend, actually apprehended the male, then handed them to security, who then handed them to police for the matter to be investigated,’ Senior Sergeant Darren Latham told ABC News.
Police say the incident is not linked to two previous sexual assaults at the festival on Friday and Saturday nights.
In a different incident, a 19-year-old woman was allegedly assaulted by a man during a set by The Jungle Giants at the Marion Bay musical festival on Friday night.
Detective Constable Damien McVilly said Tasmania police want to hear from two women who helped the victim leave the mosh pit after the alleged assault.
Detective Constable Damien McVilly said police and event organisers condemned the behaviour, which came despite police warnings about a repeat of last year’s incidents.
Fall Festival Co-Producer Paul Piticco said: ‘As a community we still have a lot of work to do around the issue of sexual assault, we totally support the police in their approach and are happy to hear they have caught one perpetrator.
Detective Constable Damien McVilly said Tasmania police want to hear from two women who helped the victim leave the mosh pit after the alleged assault (pictured is the Falls Festival)
At the 2016 Falls Festival three women reported being attacked – two said they were sexually assaulted in mosh pits, and one at the Marion Bay camping site (pictured is the Falls Festival)
‘These incidences have been happening at mass gatherings for years and we are encouraged by the fact that this unacceptable behaviour is being identified and people are coming forward, it takes a lot of courage and we are happy to be seeing a cultural change where victims feel comfortable to report.
‘As a society we need to continue to educate people about consent to eradicate this dreadful behavior and provide victims with a safe space to come forward. We encourage anyone who has any information regarding these matters to contact police.’
At the 2016 Falls Festival three women reported being attacked – two said they were sexually assaulted in mosh pits, and one at the Marion Bay camping site.
Tasmania Police last week promised to have plain-clothed officers joining cops in uniform patrolling mosh pits to prevent attacks on women.
Stickers saying ‘Enjoy the festival, don’t assault anyone’ were seen at the festival, some stuck on the backs of toilet doors.
Police urged anyone feeling isolated or unsafe to seek help from police or festival security staff.
Tasmania Police last week promised to have plain-clothed officers joining cops in uniform patrolling mosh pits to prevent attacks on women (pictured is the Falls Festival)
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