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Taylor Swift’s dad Scott Swift is being accused of assaulting a photographer in Australia, something that the singer’s reps have since come out and denied happened.
Scott Swift is in Australia for his daughter’s Eras tour and was reportedly out celebrating her final Sydney show when the incident occurred.
“Police have been told a 71-year-old man allegedly assaulted a 51-year-old man at Neutral Bay Wharf about 2:30 a.m. before leaving the location,” a New South Wales Police spokesman announced on Tuesday.
“The younger man reported the incident and inquiries are now under way by officers attached to North Shore Police Area Command.”
While police did not specifically mention any names, Scott Swift is 71-years-old and the photographer has been identified as Ben McDonald.
“As she got closer, the security shoved his umbrella in my face and camera, then as she got in the car her dad decides to charge me and punch me in the chops,” McDonald claimed.
McDonald also told DailyMail.com, “He probably decided he needed to defend his daughter, for some reason. In 23 years I have never seen anything like it.”
A spokesperson for Taylor Swift told Page Six a slightly different tale.
“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,” they spokesperson claimed.
Video of the altercation has since been released, but it doesn’t show who assaulted who, or if an actual assault even occurred.
#TaylorSwift's father, #ScottSwift, has been accused of attacking a paparazzo in #Australia — and now cops are looking into it. pic.twitter.com/vQgBdNqWag
— TMZ (@TMZ) February 26, 2024
McDonald has since called Swift’s spokesperson’s claims “bull s—” and “rubbish.”
NSW Police are currently investigating the incident. Meanwhile, Taylor Swift left the country in her private jet for the next concert on her tour which takes place in Singapore on March 2.
Interestingly, Australian actress Nicole Kidman was previously granted a restraining order against the same photographer, Ben McDonald, in 2005 after an electronic listening device was discovered outside her residence in Sydney.