ROBERT KITCHIN/STUFF Wellington City councillor Fleur Fitzsimons is concerned about the increasing violence in Courtenay Place. The Wellington musicians at the centre of multiple sexual assault accusations have been banned from bars around the city. It comes as fresh figures the city has the worst rates for assaults and sexual assaults in the country, with the capital’s party zone, centred on Courtenay Place and Cuba St, responsible for the majority of offences. Multiple allegations have been made about the musicians, who are accused on social media of sexual assault, sexual harassment, drugging and rape, mostly in Wellington. Police on Tuesday opened an investigation and urged people to approach them directly rather than naming people on social media. Detective Inspector John van den Heuvel of Wellington CIB confirmed on Wednesday police had received "further complaints” about the accused musicians since the allegations became public on Tuesday. He could not comment on whether he had talked to the men nor how many people had come forward When Stuff approached one of the subjects of accusations on Tuesday afternoon, he refused to comment but said he had been the victim of threats since the allegations surfaced. READ MORE:* Wellington could become 'city no one wants to live in', councillor says, as housing debate divides* Wellington City councillor wants Courtenay Place bars to close earlier to combat rising violence* When the biscuits go stale, the bunfight begins Jordan Mills, owner of Betty's bar on Blair St, off Courtenay Place, said the Courtenay Place hospitality community was close-knit, and he understood bars throughout the Courtenay precinct were banning the accused musicians. The names of the men had not been officially released but everyone in the industry knew who they were, he said. Rosa Woods/Stuff Danger Danger owner Matt McLaughlin has confirmed the accused musicians are banned from his three bars. Like Mills, Matt McLaughlin, owner of Danger Danger in Courtenay Pl, Panhead on Tory St, and the Gasworks in Miramar, confirmed the men were now banned from all his bars. “They are certainly not welcome, they can get f.....,” he said. They were not known to visit his bars, he said. Wellington student Maya Sims, who lobbied bars around Wellington to ban the men, applauded the move as it “lessens their [alleged] stomping ground”. Former Wellington mayor Justin Lester, now the director of DotLovesData, compiled figures showing in the past five years there had been 2056 charges of assault in the Cuba St to Courtenay Place precinct, and 176 charges for sexual assault. KEVIN STENT/Stuff DotLovesData director Justin Lester’s company ran the figures on assault and sexual assault which painted a grim picture for Wellington. On a per-capita basis, Wellington was top in New Zealand for charges of assault and sexual assault, with offending centred on its party zone. During the same period, which ended in July, 2020, central Hamilton had the highest number of all crimes charged, followed by the area around Auckland’s Queen St. Wellington’s Cuba and Courtenay Pl precinct came in third in the total figures for charges. The figures came from police crime data. Wellington City Council city safety portfolio holder Tamatha Paul said Wellington was becoming a place people didn’t want to visit “because they don’t feel safe”. Monique Ford/Stuff Councillor Tamatha Paul said people were staying away from Wellington because it felt unsafe. There were known problem areas, such as Te Aro Park, and the council was already looking at ways to address those issues. There were also initiatives such as Zeal and Take 10, where volunteers were out helping young people. Council grants committee chairwoman Fleur Fitzsimons said ending sexual violence in Wellington had been her priority since she was elected, and she received a commitment to deal with it in the council long-term plan in 2018. ROSA WOODS/Stuff Wellington’s Courtenay Place precinct is the assault and sexual assault centre of New Zealand, new figures show. “Ending sexual violence is possible. Every instance of sexual violence and harm is preventable. “Wellington has a long way to go to change our culture.” which still blames victims and tolerates sexual harassment. This doesn’t mean that we stop trying though.” The council was already putting a lot of resources into tackling the issues, she said. Police have been approached for comment. Stuff