Eleven people have been slapped with fines totalling £110,000 after ignoring the government’s rules relating to illegal gatherings.
Two organisers of an illegal rave in the village of Banwen (South Wales) were given fixed penalty notices of £10,000 each.
Around 3,000 ignored social distancing rules, which are intended to help stop the spread of COVID-19, to attend the event.
Local residents were outraged after thousands of people made their way to the village in South Wales to take part in the event which was eventually shut down by the police.
West Yorkshire Police also confirmed that it had handed out the £10,000 fines to eight people after members of the public alerted officers to various illegal gatherings which took place over the weekend.
In Headingley, four people were each fined for their roles in organising a party. Elsewhere, in Leeds, a male was slapped with a £10,000 after he decided to arrange an illegal house party.
In Burley, two DJ’s were given £10,000 fines after arranging a party. They also had thousands of pounds worth of equipment seized by the police.
The Met Police has also said that it is considering issuing fines to four people – of £10,000 each – over an unlicensed music event in Hackney Wick, east London.
Essex Police took a proactive approach to shut down an illegal music event that had been due to take place in Harlow on Saturday afternoon.
A spokesperson for the force confirmed that they would be taking legal action against the organisers of the event.
The illegal gatherings took place despite the new rules coming into force on Friday for England, prompted by more than 1,000 unlicensed events since the end of June.
Anyone in England in breach of the rules could be fined £10,000, while at least £100 fines will be handed out to people not wearing masks or attending unlawful gatherings, with repeat offenders having penalties doubled to a maximum of £3,200.
The Welsh government’s restrictions allow for up to 30 people to meet outdoors.
Forty-one thousand four hundred ninety-nine people in the UK have died after contracting COVID-19. According to the World Health Organisation, a total of 844,680 people have been killed globally from the disease.
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