This is the moment police ‘brutally’ shove five women to the ground as they break up a 3,000-strong Christmas Day beach party.
Thousands of backpackers gathered at Little Bay, south of Maroubra in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, to celebrate the festive season with a boozy party.
Officers arrived in force to break it up after residents complained it was out of control and the youths were drinking in an alcohol-free zone.
A woman is pushed to the ground by police seconds after another woman was shoved over, and is seen lying on the grass by the roadside
Footage from the beach showed large crowds singing, dancing, and drinking, with many wearing Santa hats and other festive costumes.
Revellers were eventually moved on to nearby streets where another video showed them wandering around before events turned violent.
A woman could be seen walking past an officer and appeared to lightly touch them on the shoulder, then be roughly shoved to the ground.
Seconds later another woman, who was next to the first one when she was pushed, appeared to throw something past the officer’s head.
Police fired pepper spray, hitting several people, one of which was seen stumbling around with her hands over her face before she was pushed in the back by police (pictured)
A woman in a white dress is pepper sprayed at close range by a police officer
It wasn’t clear whether the projectile hit the officer but the policeman responded by shoving her down next to the first woman.
The second woman was then dragged to the ground when she stood up, then handcuffed and led away by the same officer.
At the same time, a third woman wearing a white dress was pushed over by another officer and a loud scream was heard.
After the women were pushed, the crowd began throwing bottles in the general direction of police, one of which appeared to hit a policeman.
Police and paramedics help a man injured in the aftermath of the huge party
He is seen being tended to by a paramedic for a facial injury while another man sits next to him
Police fired pepper spray into the crowd, hitting several people, one of which was seen stumbling around with her hands over her face.
That woman was then shoved in the back by a police officer, before a fifth woman began to scuffle with the same officer and was thrown down.
Backpackers who witnessed the shocking scene slammed the police response as heavy-handed and unnecessary.
Stephen Minshaw, who was injured, claimed police were hitting people with batons as they tried to leave.
‘I don’t get why the police needed to use force. We’re backpackers, we’re not going to… fight back against them,’ he told Seven News.
Stephen Minshaw, who was injured, claimed police were hitting people with batons as they tried to leave
Injuries Mr Minshaw claims were suffered in the aftermath as police hit revellers with batons
Another witness, Becky Brown, claimed officers punched and ‘rugby tackled’ multiple woman and blamed police for sparking the violence.
‘It wasn’t “out of hand” until the police got there and f**ked everything up,’ she wrote on Facebook.
‘I witnessed with my own eyes a police man push and punch a girl in the face then pepper spray her. I also got pepper sprayed and I done absolutely f*** all.
‘That’s why they had two bottles of alcohol thrown at them, not one of the bottles hit the policemen. I can’t believe how this has been portrayed.
‘Police are supposed to make you feel safe and protected… I have never been so scared like I was when those policemen were punching girls and rugby tackling them. I am absolutely livid.’
At least 3,000 backpackers flocked to Little Bay beach in Sydney’s eastern suburbs for a boozy Christmas Day party
Footage from the beach showed large crowds singing, dancing, and drinking, many wearing Santa hats and other festive costumes
Officers arrived in force to break it up after residents complained it was out of control and the youths were drinking in an alcohol-free zone
The foreshore was packed with those celebrating Christmas Day as pictures and videos flooded social media
A police spokeswoman said she wasn’t able to comment on the videos or police tactics.
Police alleged two officers were injured when bottles were thrown at them by the crowd, with one officer suffering a minor cut to the right side of his head.
Two women, aged 23 and 25, were charged with assaulting a police officer, and the younger was also charged with causing actual bodily harm.
They were granted conditional bail to face Waverley Local Court on January 31.
The unauthorised and out-of-control beach party in Sydney’s south-east had to be broken up by police on Christmas Day (there is no suggestion these women were involved in any wrongdoing)
Hundreds of people were seen taking over the beach as revelers began drinking and dancing
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