Taylor Swift’s father, Scott Swift, was accused of assaulting an Australian photographer following a night of celebration with the singer.
An investigation was launched by the New South Wales Police Force in Sydney, Australia after Scott, 71, allegedly attacked a man named Ben McDonald at a ferry wharf in the early hours of Tuesday, February 27, local time, according to Page Six.
Scott allegedly got into a physical altercation with McDonald, 55, at 2:30 a.m. after Scott and Taylor, 34, were getting off a luxury yacht where they toasted the end of the pop star’s Sydney Eras Tour shows.
“She got off the boat, she walked towards security guards who were shoving umbrellas in our faces, and then he charged,” McDonald alleged to the Daily Mail Australia after the incident, claiming that Scott’s actions were unprompted.
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McDonald, who is the chief executive of Matrix Media Group, claimed that Scott “probably decided he needed to defend his daughter for some reason,” which resulted in the scuffle.
In response to McDonald’s allegations, Swift’s rep said in a statement to Us Weekly, “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.”
In an audio clip obtained by the outlet, both Scott and a security guard can be heard telling McDonald not to touch the umbrella that Taylor was hiding under as they exited the yacht.
In photos from the outing, Scott is holding tight onto his daughter’s hand has she tries to remain out of the camera’s view.
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Days prior, Scott made headlines for a much sweeter reason when he surprised several Swifties with food as they enjoyed Taylor’s Midnights set.
“Papa Swift giving out sandwiches and fruits,” one fan captioned a TikTok video of Scott’s fan interaction on Friday, February 23. In the clip, Scott could be seen telling fans to “help yourself” while carrying a full tray of sandwiches by the VIP tent.
Fans loved the gesture, writing in the comments that Scott’s action was “such a dad thing to do! 
.” Another user commented, “Scott needs to be protected at all costs!”
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At the same show, Taylor’s boyfriend, Travis Kelce, was also spotted spreading cheer to concertgoers.
“HE. GAVE. OUT. GUITAR. PICKS,” one fan revealed via X on Friday, sharing a video of Kelce, 34, meeting fans in Sydney.
Kelce, who has been dating Taylor since summer 2023, flew to Australia to support his girlfriend at several shows after she traveled to Las Vegas in early February to watch him win Super Bowl LVIII. Swift performed in Tokyo hours before she jetted off to Vegas in February and witnessed the Kansas City Chiefs defeat the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 in overtime.
