Police say they are pleased with the behaviour on the streets of the Newcastle 500 Supercars event.
Newcastle City Police District officers conducted a high visibility police operation across the weekend assisted by general duties officers from across the Northern Region, as well as specialist police, from the Public Order and Riot Squad (PORS), Operations Support Groups (OSG), Dog Unit, PolAir, Licensing Police, Bicycle Unit, Youth Command (PCYC), Police Transport Command and Traffic & Highway Patrol Command.
More than 160,000 racegoers gathers around the street circuit across the 3-day event.
Operation NEWCASTLE 500 Commander, Assistant Commissioner Peter McKenna APM, praised the overall behaviour of attendees and the greater community during the supercars event.
“We are pleased to say that the vast majority of Newcastle 500 racegoers were a pleasure to have in the city, with most people being respectful towards others at the event,” Assistant Commissioner McKenna said.
“With minor exceptions, those who attended were well-behaved and cooperated with the directions of police, which allowed for the race and surrounding events to run safely.”
Those minor exceptions included three men on Saturday night.
At about 7pm police responded to an altercation between three men – officers had to separate the trio and arrested a 21-year-old from Belmont and a 22-year-old from Lake Macquarie.
The younger man was issued a court attendance notice for behave in offensive manner in public place and hinder or resist police officer in the execution of duty. He is due to appear at Newcastle Local Court on Thursday 20 April 2023 and the older man was issued a criminal Infringement notice for behave in offensive manner in public place.
The third man, an acquaintance of the first two men, aged 24, was escorted to the police compound and searched, revealing a knife concealed in his clothing. The man was issued a court attendance notice for custody of knife in public place. He is due to appear at Newcastle Local Court in April.