Arabic version: وحدة جرائم الجنس في شرطة نيو ساوث ويلز تحقق في ادعاءات إساءة تاريخية في بايرون باي

According to ABC News, NSW Police has established a dedicated task force within its Sex Crimes Squad to investigate allegations of historical sexual abuse in Byron Bay. Women who have spoken with police told the ABC that the matter had escalated from Byron Bay police station, bringing additional specialist resources to the investigation.

The investigation follows ABC reporting on what it described as a toxic culture in Byron Bay’s music scene in the early 2000s. The ABC said it had spoken with more than 40 people about what they witnessed or experienced during that period. Women described alleged rapes and sexual assaults when they were as young as 12, as well as alleged public humiliation including being sprayed with urine, faeces or semen and being spied on during sex.

NSW Police declined to comment because the investigation is ongoing. The ABC reported that complaints grew after Jed Daniel Gordon, a former merchandise manager for Byron Bay hardcore band Parkway Drive, pleaded guilty to sexual intercourse with a minor. Gordon received a community corrections order in May for crimes committed in 2002 and 2003, when he was in his early 20s and the victim was 15.

The ABC said police inquiries are understood to extend beyond Gordon, who is now 45. Gordon’s lawyer has previously described additional allegations against him as “rubbish”. Parkway Drive has said Gordon is no longer involved with the band in any capacity. In March, the group posted an Instagram video in which frontman Winston McCall said the band had been blindsided by Gordon’s guilty plea, apologised and condemned his conduct; the video has since been removed from the main profile grid.