Italian band coming to perform in SXSW jailed and deported

Now, looking at your excellent performance, a few local bars invited you for a meet and greet, small performance, chilling with fans. Wouldn't this be great for the band? Exposure with international fans!! This is great for the bar too...raising their profile in their city.

Now, since you (the band) are a law abiding person, you decline any payment for those meet-and-greet events, because your work permit doesn't allow it. Awesome! Good for you!!

But because it is a bar with limited seating, they have cover charges for people coming in after 10 pm. Note that this money is not going to the band but it is going to the bar.

Should you (the band) be disallowed to enter the country and perform in the UK festival in the first place just because a fucking small-time bar charges entry fee?

>“They confiscated our cellphones and we were denied the possibility of contacting our families and loved ones,” the statement reads. “Around 10:30 p.m., two prison officers frisked us, handcuffed us and brought us to jail in a police car. We spent the night in jail and had been escorted there as though we were three criminals.”

Unnecessarily heavy handed for what sounds like a simple misunderstanding.

>The control agents who did a quick check on the concerts we informed them of noticed that two of the venues were asking for entry fees and this was enough to convince them that we needed work visas

Pretty thin evidence of any wrong doing on the part of the three individuals involved. Someone else is getting paid so you need a work visa, enjoy your night in jail.