Hot tub parties and poker games broken up by police
A poker game claiming to be a business meeting and a home bar packed with 13 drinkers are among the gatherings broken up by police over Covid breaches.
And today, one of the top officers in Northumbria Police has laid out the stark reality of how socialising could lead to death as he called for people to put a stop to their “stupid and selfish behaviour”.
Assistant Chief Constable Neil Hutchison revealed how hot tub parties, a children’s birthday packed with 30 people from different families and student parties were among incidents which led to breaches.
He also said people had been travelling to remote spots under the guise of their daily walk, only to meet up in a group.
It comes after the force, alongside Durham Constabulary, halted a rave event being set up on the Northumberland-Durham border at the weekend, with work ongoing to look out for future events.
But he says it is the public who are helping put a stop to such contraventions, with 100 up to several hundred calls made each day from people angry to see others ignoring the rules.
And he said with the restrictions now in place for months, no one can claim they have misunderstood them.
“I think sometimes the excuse from people is ‘it’s not going to finish me off ’, ‘I’m
young’ – and what I say to that is it’s not about you,” said ACC Hutchison.
“If you’re in a group of people you are at risk of getting Covid from each other and you will spread that in your community – people will become seriously ill and die.
“There are some people who don’t think the rules apply to them or somehow excuse their gathering because they have been good so far, so have a get-together with their friends, and what I’d say to that is sorry, that
doesn’t wash.”
Since the first lockdown in March, Northumbria has become the top force in the country for the number of Fixed Penalty Notices for breaches, with more than 4,000 issued, while its incidents of antisocial behaviour rose from 46,763 in 2019 to 70,153 last year overwhelmingly due to Covid breaches.
It has arrested 48 people for coronavirus-related offences – such as where someone claiming to have the virus has coughed on an officer – while it has sent out 700 warning letters, with most of those breaking the rules aged from 18 up to their late 20s.
It has dealt with fewer than 20 people for breaching quarantining rules, but expects that to rise.
He said the force had worked to educate people about breaches as the pandemic began, but as the region’s case levels rocketed, its stance became stricter as it worked with councils and the NHS to try and halt the spread.
He also warned anyone thinking of breaking the rules by bending the guidance to think about how they feel if they had to explain it to one of his officers, who he said had worked tirelessly on the frontline risking their own health during the crisis.
ACC Hutchison added his thanks to the vast majority for sticking to the law and said the only route out of the restrictions was to follow them until the pandemic is over.