Police respond to illegal gatherings across UK overnight

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A DJ has become the first person to be arrested and fined for organising as police cracked down on illegal gatherings over the weekend.

The man was hosting a street party in Leeds, West Yorkshire, when he was detained by police and, under the new rules, could face a fine of up to £10,000.

It is unclear how much he has been fined for hosting the illegal party, where five others were also spoken to. 

Officers were later called out to another house party in the Hyde Park area of the city, where residents around 50 people were flouting social distancing rules. 

Police shut down several illegal gatherings last night after new lockdown rules were brought in across the UK ahead of the bank holiday weekend.

Thousands of pounds worth of music equipment was seized by Essex Police ahead of an unlicensed music event and West Midlands Police said they received reports of 90 illegal gatherings. 

A large rave that started in the early hours of Sunday morning in the village of Banwen in Neath, Port Talbot.

South Wales Police said up to 3,000 people are thought to have travelled from across the UK to attend an illegal rave in Banwen, in Neath Port Talbot.  

Residents of the village of Banwen say they have been kept awake since 1am when crowds began to gather in a nearby forest. 

Hundreds have left their cars and vans parked illegally, obstructing roads throughout the village.

One woman who attended the rave this morning said she’d driven all the way from London to take part.

Chief Superintendent Simon Belcher said: ‘This type of illegal gathering is totally unacceptable and we are aware of the concerns it is causing for the local community.

‘I would like to again remind people of their obligations under the current coronavirus legislation and the overarching goal for everyone to take personal responsibility by following Welsh Government regulations to keep Wales safe.

‘We have a number of resources in attendance including the police helicopter and roads policing officers.

‘It has been estimated there are up to 3,000 people at the gathering who have apparently travelled from across the UK and we are looking at all pieces of legislation as to what action can be undertaken safely.

‘Unlawfully parked cars will be dealt with and people who continue, despite our advice, to try and attend this illegal event area being turned away.’

Norfolk Police said officers are at the scene of an unlicensed music event at Thetford forest which started late on Saturday night.

More than 500 people are in attendance with more than 100 vehicles on site in an isolated area of the forest, near to the English Heritage site Grimes Graves, the force said. 

Speaking at the Banwen rave, a reveller said: ‘I’ve come from Lewisham in London and we travelled up following the party line and it’s been absolutely bloody fantastic. Met nothing but lovely people here as always.

‘That’s the thing about these events, everybody you meet is absolutely splendid and lovely and it’s all good vibes. There’s nothing bad to be said about these kinds of things to be honest.’

However, one local said he feels like a ‘prisoner’ in his own home, as young people are ‘obviously under the influence of drink and drugs’ and could be seen sleeping on benches in the village early this morning.

South Wales Police have confirmed they are aware of the incident and have been in attendance.

Assistant Chief Constable Nick Davison, who is leading the Norfolk Police operation, said it was ‘extremely disappointing’ to see such events taking place amid the pandemic.

He said: ‘We’ve deployed a number of resources to the scene including the drone unit, dogs, the National Police Air Service helicopter and specially-trained public order officers who are experienced in dealing with such events.

‘Following assessments, it’s clear this is a well-established and planned event which is due to go on until tomorrow.

‘We are working to close the event down in a controlled manner, taking the safety of those in attendance and our officers into account. Due to the number of people at the event, additional policing resources will be needed and this will take time to resource.

‘Coronavirus is still with us and continues to be a real threat, so it’s extremely disappointing to see these types of events taking place when the rest of our communities are doing everything they can to help stop the spread of the virus.

‘We will work to identify organisers, seize equipment, deal with any criminal offences and impose penalties where evidence is available.’

Under the new measures, which came into force on Friday after the Metropolitan Police alone responded to more than 1,000 unlicensed events since the end of June, organisers of illegal raves will be hit with £10,000 fines.

Thousands of pounds worth of equipment was seized by Essex Police ahead of an unlicensed music event the force said was due to take place in Harlow on Saturday afternoon.

Chief Inspector Lewis Basford said organisers of such events should ask themselves if it was worth the risk of the new fines.

He said: ‘My final message is to the organisers: we will seize the equipment – I don’t care if you’ve hired it from someone or if it’s yours, we will break up your event, and we can now fine you up to £10,000.’

Humberside Police requested that the public avoid the area around the Buck Hotel in Driffield, East Yorkshire, due to an incident on Sunday morning. No further details were available.

West Midlands Police said early on Sunday it had dealt with about 90 reports from the public about possible breaches of restrictions ‘but we’ve not had to use our enforcement powers’.

The force added: ‘Tonight’s been dominated by reports of house parties, rather than the really big gatherings we’ve seen earlier in recent weeks.’

West Yorkshire Police said a man was arrested after DJing at a street party on Wepener Mount, Harehills, while five other people at the gathering were fined.

Superintendent Chris Bowen said: ‘We hope people will recognise the ongoing risks of holding or taking part in events such as this but where intervention is needed, we will fine people and make arrests.’

The new measures also mean people not wearing masks and participants in unlawful gatherings can be fined starting at £100, doubling for each repeat offence up to a maximum of £3,200.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has defended the legislation, saying it represents a crackdown on ‘the most serious breaches of social distancing restrictions’.

Writing in The Daily Telegraph, she said: ‘We will not allow this breathtakingly selfish behaviour from a senseless minority to jeopardise the progress we have made together.’

She lashed out at the organisers of illegal raves, warning them they are ‘not above the law’. 

Ms Patel said the legislation represents a crackdown on ‘the most serious breaches of social distancing restrictions’. 

Metropolitan Police Federation chairman Ken Marsh, however, warned the legislation will mean ‘absolutely nothing’ for enforcement in London.

He said: ‘It could be good for areas outside London, but it means absolutely nothing to us here.

‘People just set up a music box in the middle of the street and say ‘it’s not mine’, it’s utter nonsense.’

He called for clearer legislation which would allow officers to ‘be more forceful clearing the area immediately, close the area down, the Government need more forceful wording around groups of people gathering’.

But a police chief has argued confusion over the guidelines is being used by some as an ‘excuse’ to break the rules.

Andy Rhodes, Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary, said there was a ‘world of difference’ between people acting sensibly and others who were ‘flagrantly’ ignoring the rules.