NSW Police to target drug supply rather than possession at music festivals
The days of young people “going through the gauntlet of cops full of drug dogs” at music festivals are over, one of the state’s top cops has said, as the focus shifts to train stations, parks and more secluded locations to target those selling drugs to festivalgoers.
Paul Dunstan, assistant commissioner and liveness representative for NSW Police’s State of Live Music inquiry, told Monday’s hearing that police had changed their enforcement strategy at music festivals from targeting drug possession to supply.
Dunstan said: “We have made a slight change in our strategy when it comes to policing drug possession, particularly at music festivals. We are now focusing more on drug supply. Gone are the days when young people attended festivals and had to go through tough battles with police full of drug dogs.”
“We still have drug dogs and we make no apologies for having drug dogs at festivals, but we focus on the supply of drugs, not the possession of them. That’s why you’ll see us more often in train stations, parks or on the roads leading to the festival as we try to identify and track down those responsible for the supply of banned drugs.”
It follows a landmark 3,000-member class action in the NSW Supreme Court in September last year challenging the legality of police strip searches at music festivals and expected to cost the state millions.
Raya Meredith, the lead plaintiff in the case, was awarded $93,000 in damages plus interest after she was forced to pull down her top, expose her breasts, remove her shorts and underwear, remove her tampon and bend over during a drug test while attending the Splendor in the Grass music festival in July 2018, when she was 27 years old. No drugs were found on him.
Dunstan said the new strategy would be driven by an “intelligence-led approach” to charging people supplying both on- and off-festival.
“[It’s] Possession of a prohibited drug is still an offense, but depending on the type of drug [festivalgoers] “Depending on the type and quantity of the drug, you have the right to receive a warning, referral or notice of failed attendance or a fee,” Dunstan said.
According to the report, between 2024 and 2025, the number of people charged with drug crimes as a result of strip searches following the sign of a drug dog dropped. Data presented to parliament by NSW Police.
While 65 people were charged with possession, this number increased to 87 in 2025. A criminal complaint was filed against 19 people in 2024 and 26 people in 2025 for the supply.
In 2025, a total of 213 strip searches were carried out as a result of a drug dog report and illegal substances were seized from 132 people. In 2024, 355 searches were made and 217 people were found to be using illegal substances.
Dunstan confirmed that police operations would not be reduced at the request of Greens MP Cate Faehrmann, but instead the bulk of it would be around the festival and not at the gate.
“Procurement clearly does not take place at the front doors of venues and our strategy is aimed at people meeting in quieter, more secluded locations rather than at the front door of the venue,” Dunstan said.
The use of drug dogs at music festivals has long been the subject of controversy. An inquest has been launched into the overdose deaths of six teenagers at music festivals in NSW in 2019, and it heard that 19-year-old Alex Ross-King died of a drug overdose after opting to “double shoot” two MDMA capsules at a music festival to avoid being caught by police.
Dunstan acknowledged that the police’s tendency to target supply and stay away from the front door was to make young revelers feel safer.
“We want to make it safe for young people or people attending these venues and I think there was a suggestion or thought that a police line could potentially make young people feel unsafe and so we’ve kind of expanded our area to try to pick up those in the back alleys or isolated areas where supply is potentially taking place,” he said.
Start your day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
Kayla Olaya is a culture reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.
