Missouri Music Festival Bust Affects Promoters

Missouri Music Festival Bust Affects Promoters

After a four-year investigation made by the state Highway Patrol, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Internal Revenue Service, musician, Jimmy Tebeau is accused of being a purveyor of an illicit drug scene, and Camp Zoe, the 350-acre campground he uses as a venue for music festivals is now being ceased.

Camp Zoe, which is a youth camp located deep in the Missouri Ozarks has staged its last concert on Halloween of last year and undercover agents made more than 100 drug purchases, where drug vendors shouted sales pitches to passers-by along the campground roads and walking trails to entice customers.

According to reports, it has been found that there is a sort of Middle East bazaar-like atmosphere “open sales” of certain illegal drugs inside Camp Zoe like cocaine, marijuana, LSD, Ecstasy, hallucinogenic mushrooms, opium and marijuana-laced foods. The federal government sued Tebeau, to seize Camp Zoe and get nearly $200,000 in profits from his Schwagstock concert series.

The musician declined to discuss the details of the case as advised by his lawyers. They argue that the event was overzealous and might cause fear not just for music festival promoters, but other business in the entertainment and sports industries, for they are not the one responsible for the presence of illegal drug trades.

Tebeau apparently tried his best to hire off-duty sheriff’s deputies and state troopers as private security guards to work for the festivals were unsuccessful, but this clearly shows that he is not involved in the proliferation of the drug trade. He says, "If there were a problem from lack of safety at the camp, there were many other ways the government could have gone about making the camp safe. They could have made whatever drug busts they wanted to make."

Posted by Kade Quinn on Monday July 18 2011, 12:33 PM EST. Ref: CNN. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Entertainment, Featured News. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0