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A New Plymouth bar owner was relieved to hear his establishment had become the first in Taranaki to be shut down for breaching liquor laws.
Outback Pub 'n Grub owner Greg Davis said since popular bars The Mill and The Grumpy Mole closed down, Maori gangs and drunken teens had gravitated to his place.
He appeared in New Plymouth District Court yesterday for a licence breach hearing after police raised a number of concerns about the bar, the Taranaki Daily News reported.
Central District liquor licensing co-ordinator Senior Sergeant Tracy Patterson spent more than two hours undercover at the Pub 'n Grub and saw how out of control things had become.
Ms Patterson told the court she had seen patched Black Power members dealing what appeared to be methamphetamine at the bar and people smoking cannabis near the doorman.
A teenage girl was so drunk she remained oblivious to the fact her breasts were exposed.
A middle-aged patron passed out next to Ms Patterson as she watched an under-17 sports team from Wellington being served at the bar.
The night was punctuated by a man leaping onto a table, raising his middle finger to the entire bar and yelling, "Who runs this place? I'm going to smash them."
Mr Davis said most people loaded up on cheap drinks from the supermarket before venturing into town around midnight.
It was at Mr Davis' suggestion that Liquor Licensing Authority Judge William Unwin cancelled his general manager's certificate and the bar's licence.
He said it used to be a nice bar but the patrons were now out of control to the point where he was receiving death threats.
"If the licence is cancelled, I'll be happy."
- NZPA
