Victoria Police Settles With Melbourne Gay Club Owner Over Bungled Thick ‘N’ Juicy Raid
Image: Representational Image. Photo: Thick 'N' Juicy
Four months after Victoria Police conducted a raid at Chasers Night Club in South Yarra and forced the closure of the ‘Thick ‘N Juicy’ event, they have reached a confidential financial settlement with Martha Tsamis, owner of the club, reported The Age newspaper.
Thick ‘N Juicy holds dance parties in Melbourne and Sydney for the “big family of beautiful men” and their LGBTQI friends. According to the publication, the raid occurred around 4 am on April 16.
The raid by officers, including detectives from the Port Phillip crime investigation unit, was over an alleged sexual assault of a drag performer in a toilet cubicle on the first floor of the club.
Police ordered the event to be shut down and evacuated over 400 patrons who were in the club. Around 40 minutes later, police did an about turn and reversed their decision. By then most of the club patrons had left the premises. There were no charges brought in connection with the alleged sexual assault.
Police Asked To Pay Damages To Martha Tsamis Previously
There were questions over whether police had the authority to shut down the event and empty the club. The publication reported that the police reached the confidential deal with the club’s owner Martha Tsamis.
This is not the first time that the police have been forced to pay damages to Tsamis.
In 2017, during a swingers party at Inflation Club in Melbourne CBD owned by Tsamis, members of the Critical Incident Response Team shot a couple while performing a sex act. The police had stormed the venue after a patron reported that a man had a gun in his pants – it was found to be a plastic toy.
The police paid around $3.5 million in compensation to the couple and a smaller amount was paid to Tsamis.
In 2019, the Supreme Court ordered the police to pay $90,000 in damages to Tsamis. The court ruled that she had been defamed by then police superintendent Brett Guerin over his statements that the Inflation club was a “honeypot” for drugs and that she allowed minors to enter the venue.
Truly sad to see the police force are still giving people good reasons to stay home and away from clubs and big parties. All across the “Lucky Country”, a land so young and free, we hear reports of police raids on gay and gay-friendly venues and organised social events.
Sure, some people take drugs and drink lots but we don’t ALL do that and those who do tend to be the happy, friendly dancers, there to have a great time, not to be grabbed by an officer of the law, dragged off the dance floor, strip searched, have a sniffer dog all over their privates and told to go home.
What was the crime?
Those officers who do this, instead if walking the streets, being visible, reassuring those potentially vulnerable people/party-goers that they are around to protect them from vicious attacks or stopping the hoons who parade along those streets, checking them for drugs or DUI.
Protect and Serve, paid for by tax-payers, appreciated by most of us, so why are the real criminals getting away from them? Because they’re too busy plotting, raiding and harming the harmless, happy party-going public!
This has to stop. Haven’t the bars and clubs suffered enough this past few years??!!