AN Australian sword swallower has told how he was arrested while busking in New York - for brandishing a sword in public. The Space Cowboy - aka Chayne Hultgren, 33, from Byron Bay, - claims police threw him into a packed cell. Mr Hultgren, who claims the world record of swallowing 27 swords, said he was approached by police as he performed in front of a large crowd. He claims the officer told him: I dont care if you are a sword swallower, you were holding a sword in public and I have every right to shoot you. Mr Hultgren said he was told to tell the crowd to disperse and hed be back to finish his show in an hour. As soon as most of the crowd dispersed I was cuffed and aggressively guided into the back of a police vehicle, he said. I spent the next 24 hours handcuffed and locked up in a cell. No bed, no food, no rights. When I was locked in a small cell with 26 other prisoners one of the officers said tauntingly and loudly through the bars: 'Dont tell these guys you swallow. ON