Taylor Swift’s team say her father Scott allegedly punched an Australian photographer in the face following ‘threats to throw a female staff member into the water’.
Scott Swift, 71, is accused of striking Ben McDonald, 51, at a ferry wharf in the suburb of Neutral Bay about 2.30am on Tuesday, after the Australian leg of her Eras tour wrapped up.
Taylor and Scott had travelled from Homebush on a luxury superyacht called Quantum before the alleged assault.
A spokeswoman for Taylor Swift told Daily Mail Australia the photographers were being ‘aggressive’.
‘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,’ she said.
However, Mr McDonald slammed the statement as ‘utter rubbish’ and said the only female at the scene was Taylor.
‘This is the sort of bulls**t I might expect,’ he said.
‘Which female was that? The only one there was Taylor.’
Mr McDonald, the chief executive of Matrix Media Group, said the altercation was caught on camera and did not show the photographers acting aggressively.
An investigation into the alleged incident has been launched by the North Shore Police Command.
Taylor Swift is pictured during her Eras tour in Sydney on Friday night. She has now completed her tour of Australia
Police confirmed they were investigating claims Scott Swift, 71, allegedly assaulted a photographer. Taylor is pictured under the umbrella, next to her father Scott (right) last night
Mr McDonald previously accused Scott of ‘charging’ at him once he was off the superyacht with his daughter.
He originally thought it was a security guard and was shocked when he realised the alleged attacker was Taylor’s dad.
‘In 23 years of taking pictures, I have never seen anything like it,’ he said.
Mr McDonald said he didn’t know what triggered the alleged assault.
‘She got off the boat, she walked towards security guards who were shoving umbrellas in our faces.’
Footage of the alleged incident showed Taylor and her father walking up from the wharf with large umbrellas blocking the view.
Mr McDonald started shooting and a security guard could be heard telling him not to touch the umbrella.
Scott Swift is pictured holding Taylor’s hand at Neutral Bay wharf, on Sydney’s north shore, at about 3am on Tuesday
Matrix Media photographer Ben McDonald (pictured) was allegedly struck in the face by Taylor Swift’s father, Scott
The camera jolted and there was movement from behind the umbrella.
A security guard could be heard saying, ‘that wasn’t me, that wasn’t me’.
Mr McDonald asked: ‘Who was that?’
He then went to The Rocks police station and reported the alleged incident.
Mr McDonald did not require medical attention and does not believe he will have lasting injuries, but has ‘very sore chops’ on the left side of his face.
Scott has been a fixture by his daughter’s side throughout her sold-out Eras tour.
He has been praised for handing out sandwiches to fans in the middle of a Sydney show, saying ‘help yourselves’.
The day before Taylor’s first show in Melbourne earlier this month, extra tickets were released but most had a limited view of the stage.
Scott walked around handing out VIP passes so excited fans would have access to better seats.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Taylor’s representatives for comment.
Scott has been a fixture by his daughter’s side throughout her sold-out Eras tour Down Under (pictured together)
