Police issue first £10,000 fines for illegal raves as 3,000 partygoers descend on Welsh village

Police descended on an illegal rave of more than 3,000 people this weekend as it emerged officers had started issuing £10,000 fines for those breaking the law.

Thousands of revellers from all over Britain congregated on a mountain village in Wales on Sunday, despite the newly announced crackdown by the Home Office on unlawful gatherings.

Hundreds of cars were spotted blocking lanes and country roads as crowds of people turned up to the gathering in Banwen in South Wales.

Police were called after locals said they had been kept awake by loud music that had been blaring since 1am.

One resident told WalesOnline he felt like a "prisoner" in his own home as young people were "obviously under the influence of drink and drugs" and could be seen sleeping on benches in the village early on Sunday morning.

Another resident said antisocial behaviour had been taking place all night, with people vomiting and urinating outside of homes.

"The residents of Roman Road in Banwen have been up all night, we have had to put up with people vomiting, urinating outside peoples homes," she said.

The resident said she phoned the police twice on 999 and was told there were 16 police vehicles in attendance.

Organisers of illegal gatherings of more than 30 people can now be fined up to £10,000 after new measures were brought into place on Friday.

People taking part in illegal raves, unlicensed music events or any other unlawful gatherings of 30 people or more now face a £100 fine.

Two organisers of the rave in South Wales were issued the fixed penalty notice.

Chief Superintendent Simon Belcher of South Wales Police said the force is "looking at all pieces of legislation" as they dealt with the huge crowds.

He 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.”

Elsewhere West Yorkshire Police made use of the newly announced enforcement powers, fining eight people £10,000 pounds for hosting parties during the bank holiday weekend.

At one house party, two DJs were fined £10,000 and had their equipment seized while those in attendance were fined £100.

In addition a 27-year-old-man was charged with causing a public nuisance after officers broke up a street party in Leeds, on Saturday.

Five other people at the gathering were fined £100 each.

Meanwhile, thousands of pounds worth of music equipment was seized by Essex Police ahead of a rave near a warehouse that 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.

Riot police from Norfolk Constabulary clashed with ravers at a party on Saturday evening in Thetford Forest.

Armed with riot shields and clad in protective equipment, officers attempted to break up the 500 revellers that had massed in the forest, near Grimes Graves, a Neolithic flint mining English heritage site.

Assistant Chief Constable Nick Davison, who is leading the Norfolk Police operation, said a drone unit, dogs, the National Police Air Service helicopter and specially trained public order officers had all been deployed to break up the party.

He said it was clear the "well-established and planned event" was due to continue into Monday and the force was working to "close the event down in a controlled manner, taking the safety of those in attendance and our officers into account".

“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," he added.

The event was shut down on Sunday night, and police said they had made a number of arrests and seized sound equipment.

"Officers did meet some hostility when entering the site with bottles and cans used as missiles and thrown at them. Fortunately, no one was injured," Mr Davison said.

Adam Holloway, a Tory MP who sits on the home affairs select committee, said: "If we've got a situation where we've got thousands of young people who feel invulnerable to the disease, who are so selfish that they are not prepared to think about other people's grandparents or other people's relatives, they should perhaps try to think about their own.

"Fines only matter if they are actually enforced, if people know that they are actually going to have to pay them.

"I am not sure that fines are actually the answer."

Home Secretary Priti Patel has defended the new rules, 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."

The Metropolitan Police force alone has responded to more than 1,000 unlicensed events since the end of June.