Two eshays have been charged after hundreds of fans blocked streets and allegedly attacked police during a meet and greet with the notorious rapper and YouTube star Spaniard.
The Sydney-based social media personality visited Logan, south of Brisbane, on Saturday and was greeted by a crowd of around 350 fans.
The encounter quickly turned into what Queensland Police called a ‘large-scale hooning event’, with shocking videos showing young men kicking police cars.
Three police cars were reportedly damaged during the event and one person, a 20-year-old Waterford man, was arrested on Saturday.
He was charged with one count each of willfully damaging police property, committing a public nuisance, entering premises with intent to commit an indictable offense (entering an occupied police vehicle) and participating in a hoon event.
Two men aged 18 and 20 have been charged following the Spaniard’s (pictured) visit to Logan
He is due to appear at Beenleigh Magistrates Courts on April 3.
An 18-year-old Ridge man was later arrested at a property in Merino Street.
He has been charged with one count each of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, taking part in a group activity for racing, burnout or other offenses and eluding.
He is due to appear at Beenleigh Magistrates Court on April 22.
A second man was arrested on Sunday after officers executed a search warrant at a property on Moffatt Road.
Investigators are still working to identify several others involved in the incident.
Saturday’s “hooning” event saw massive crowds gather on Bourke Street in Waterford West to watch burnouts and run alongside Spaniards.
The former prisoner, whose real name is Anthony Lees, spent time in youth detention aged 15 and became addicted to heroin the following year.
He spent 12 years in and out of New South Wales prisons on various drug charges before turning his life around in 2017.
Since then, he has established himself as a successful rapper and works to show the underbelly of cities around the world through his ‘Into the Hood’ series on YouTube, where he has amassed more than 628,000 subscribers.
His fans are often called eshays.
Hundreds gathered in Logan’s Bourke Street on Saturday (pictured) for what Queensland Police have called a ‘large-scale hooning event’
Officers and specialist units were called from the Logan, Gold Coast and South Brisbane districts to regain control of the fight (pictured, a man kicks a police car)
Police attended the event on Saturday to control the crowd, but officers were forced to call in backup as things quickly got out of hand.
Footage on social media captured the wild scenes on the packed street, including several burnouts, as billowing clouds of smoke and flames filled the sky.
Hoons were filmed attacking a police car, launching repeated kicks at the dented vehicle.
Another video showed bottles being thrown at police vehicles.
“Officers responded to reports of a large group of people gathered at an event in Bourke Street at around 2pm,” police said in a statement.
‘Around 350 people attended the area, with some vehicles committing traffic related offenses and driving in a dangerous manner.
‘Several crews attended the scene and declared an incident out of control and blocked off the street.
‘Three police cars were damaged as a result of the event.’
Officers and specialist units were called in from across the Logan, Gold Coast and South Brisbane districts to regain control.
Order was eventually restored by 4 p.m.
“The potential for a tragedy just cannot be underestimated, they are putting their lives at risk,” Chief Inspector Les Bulluss said.
The Spaniard (left) has amassed more than 628,000 followers on YouTube since recovering from drug addiction in 2017
Queensland Police are still investigating the incident itself, which saw three police cars damaged (pictured, participants kicking a police car)
Residents living in Bourke Street were furious that their neighborhood was being turned into a war zone.
“It’s disgusting,” one woman said Nine news.
When asked about the reason behind the gathering, one attendee explained ‘mate, it’s a party, it’s just a party, it’s family’.