COP CRACKDOWN
Police will be able to fine Brits and disperse crowds under new national lockdown rules
POLICE will be dishing out fines of up to £6,400 to Brits who are caught flouting the new lockdown rules.
They will also be allowed to break up crowds under the new national lockdown rules announced by Boris Johnson this evening.
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Rule breakers will first be hit with a £200 fine for a first offence which will then double to £400 for a second.
The fines could continue to double to as much as £6,400 if Brits continue to ignore life-saving restrictions.
Coppers have already been busting groups of people who ignored the rules to stay at home on New Years Eve, with a rave inside a church shut down.
Officers were pelted with bottles as they arrived at a 500-year-old church in Basildon, Essex.
They launched drinks and ice cubes at officers, told them to "f*** off" and chanted as they caused £1,000 in damage.
The yobs barricaded a door to stop cops from getting in while music blared.
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Around 600 people bought tickets for £40 each, with strobe lights and DJ decks set up inside.
The gig started at 8pm and was due to go on for 12 hours - with some ravers taking cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine - but cops crashed it before midnight.
A source said: "It was a well-planned event. People were picked up in coaches from around Essex and no one was given the location.
"They had bouncers checking the vehicles and searching people for weapons before they came in. There were multiple ticket sellers but it wasn't advertised online - it was all word of mouth."
What you could be fined for
You could face a fine for:
- Being out of your home without a reasonable excuse as below
- Travelling abroad or going on holiday during the lockdown period - as this is not a reasonable excuse
- Breaking Covid rules by having others outside your household inside your home
- Meeting people outside your household outside - unless it's one person for exercise alone
- Hosting a gathering - this could see you get a fine of up to £10,000
- Businesses or venues can be fined up to £10,000 too for continuing to operate despite being ordered to shut
- Not wearing a face covering on public transport or in shops
A full list of reasons are set to be published by the Government in due course.
The excuses are expected to include:
- Work: If you have to go to work as you really can't work from home, this will be allowed. Key workers such as those who work for the police, or NHS, will be permitted to do so
- School: only for the kids of key workers or vulnerable pupils
- Exercise: Boris will continue to allow unlimited exercise outdoors. That means people can carry on going for walks, runs and other forms of exercise outdoors if they wish. You can do that with your household, support bubble or on your own with one person from another household
- Food, drink & supplies: People will still be allowed out to collect food and drink - such as at the supermarket, or take-aways
- Medical appointments: Everyone will be urged to continue to attend hospital and doctor appointments if they need to
- To escape injury or harm; those at risk of harm are allowed to leave their current home and move elsewhere
- To provide care for vulnerable people, or as a volunteer: people will still be allowed to travel to care for people who need it, or attend volunteer work too
In Whitechapel, East London, a group of people were fined for breaking Tier 4 restrictions by playing dominoes in a restaurant.
The 12 were found hiding in a dark room when police went into the building.
In a video released by the Met yesterday, the owner says: “They’re playing dominoes.”
He first tried to stall officers, claiming only workers were there, police said.
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The 12 rule-breakers were given fixed penalty notices while the restaurant owner faces a council fine.
Around 100 men and women danced and drank at a bash in Sewardstonebury, just a few miles from Epping Forest in Essex - which has the highest infection rate in the country with 1,321.3 cases per 100,000 people.
They had sparklers hanging from bottles of Belvedere vodka and the £4 million property was kitted out with balloons.
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The woman who organised it was fined the maximum £10,000 and 25 fixed penalty notices totalling more than £8,000 were handed out.
A generator was seized from a rave at an abandoned warehouse in Brentwood, with 100 cleared from the venue. Two people were arrested for failing to provide details and drink-driving.
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