An investigation was opened on Tuesday in Australia after a complaint from a photographer claiming to have been assaulted by the father of American singer Taylor Swift. “Police were informed that a 71-year-old man was accused of assaulting a 51-year-old man at Neutral Bay Wharf,” a ferry terminal in Sydney’s north, “before leaving the scene,” the statement said. Alicia McCumstie, a police spokeswoman. “The younger man reported the incident and the investigation is ongoing,” she added.
Australian police do not usually release the identities of people under investigation. But a police source and the alleged victim, photographer Ben McDonald, both told AFP that it was the pop star’s father, Scott Swift.
Ben McDonald said he was taking photos of Taylor Swift on a yacht on Sydney Harbor after her tour of the city when, he says, members of the singer’s security brandished an umbrella in front of him in order to prevent him from continuing as the singer went down to the pier to join a vehicle.
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After his departure, the photographer claimed to have been “hit in the ribs” by a man. “I didn’t know who he was but I looked at the photos and saw him holding Taylor’s hands and it was her dad,” he continued. “It was a shock, this had never happened to me in 26 years,” he added.
A spokesperson for Taylor Swift responded to the allegation by saying there had been shoving and aggressive behavior by unidentified people on the waterfront. “Two individuals were aggressively approaching Taylor , grabbed his security personnel and threatened to throw an employee into the water,” the spokesperson told AFP. However, he did not comment on the alleged attack on the star’s father, nor responded to requests for clarification on the facts.
The megastar is currently in the middle of his “Eras Tour” world tour, which is expected to bring in a total of two billion dollars in revenue after having already broken the symbolic ceiling of the billion collected last year, a first in the history of the music. She is due to travel to Singapore this week for further tour dates.
Police declined to say whether Scott Swift was contacted or questioned before the group left. On social networks, fans of the singer were quick to defend the man some call “Papa Swift”.
