By Tomás Mier
Sydney police confirmed Monday night that they are investigating an assault allegation near Sydney’s North Shore at 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday (10:30 a.m. Monday ET) after reports surfaced that it involved Taylor Swift‘s father.
In a new statement to Rolling Stone, a spokesperson for the star says that at the time of the alleged incident, two people were “aggressively pushing” to get to Swift, grabbed security, and threatened a member of the singer’s staff.
“Two individuals were aggressively pushing their way towards Taylor, grabbing at her security personnel, and threatening to throw a female staff member into the water,” the spokesperson says.
Before the new information, police told Rolling Stone that a 51-year-old man, reported as photographer Ben McDonald by the Daily Mail, “did not require medical treatment” at the scene after an alleged assault involving a 71-year-old. Though the New South Wales Police Force did not mention Scott Swift by name, they responded with information to a request that named Scott and referred to Daily Mail‘s reporting. Scott Swift is 71 years old.
In footage obtained by the tabloid, Scott is seen walking out of the pier and toward a vehicle as a seeming member of Taylor’s team asks the paparazzi to “step away from the vehicle” while blocking their view with an umbrella.
Scott and Taylor (who was hidden under a different umbrella) are then seen approaching the vehicle. As they enter the car, a person filming seems to fall. “That wasn’t me, that wasn’t me,” a second person could be heard offscreen.
“She got off the boat, she walked towards security guards who were shoving umbrellas in our faces, and then he charged,” the photographer told the Daily Mail, calling Swift’s team’s statement “utter rubbish.”
The photographer reported the alleged incident to the authorities, and “inquiries are now underway” by the North Shore Police Area Command.
The incident comes after Taylor wrapped her run of Eras Tour shows in Australia on Monday, after playing three nights in Melbourne and four nights in Sydney. (Katy Perry, Rita Ora, and Travis Kelce were among the audience members at the Sydney shows.) She is set to head to Singapore in March for six performances at the Singapore National Stadium.
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