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AAP
AAP
National
Samantha Lock

Dozens charged with drug offences at New Year festival

The police operation targeted illegal drugs and anti-social behaviour at the music event in Sydney. (April Fonti/AAP PHOTOS)

Twenty five people have been charged with drug offences following a police operation at a New Year's Day dance festival in Sydney.

Six people were arrested and charged with drug supply offences at the 'Fuzzy Field Day 2024' event where more than 24,000 gathered at The Domain on Monday.

NSW Police said the police operation targeted anti-social behaviour, alcohol-related crime, and the supply of illegal drugs both inside and outside the venue.

A total of 91 people were found to be in possession of illicit drugs, including ecstasy, MDMA, cocaine, ketamine, cannabis and LSD.

Police will allege in court that a 23-year-old man was in possession of 60 ecstasy tablets. 

He was granted conditional bail to appear in court in February.

A 28-year-old man was issued a field court attendance notice for possessing a knife in a public place and a 25-year-old man was arrested and charged with a domestic violence assault.

The arrests follow renewed pressure on the NSW government to introduce a drug-checking regime and scrap the use of sniffer dogs and strip searches at music festivals.

A damning report released in September last year detailed NSW Police search figures that showed sniffer dogs scored an average drug detection success rate of just 25 per cent during the last decade.

A Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) review also revealed officers routinely failed to follow proper strip search procedures.

The NSW Labor government has promised to examine legal, law enforcement, education, health and treatment issues including pill testing and other harm-reduction measures at a drug summit this year.

But the Greens and drug support advocates say more urgent action is needed to avert more deaths during the festival season following the deaths of two men in in their twenties who died after leaving a Sydney festival in October last year.

Premier Chris Minns has said he would not rule out a trial of free pill-testing sites, a measure taken by other states and territories.

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