Students at lockdown party broke rules because they were ‘bored and wanted fun’
The organiser was also caught on camera complaining it 'wasn't worth £10,000'.
A student at a huge house party complained to police ‘we’ve been bored and we want to have fun’, as officers broke up the gathering and fined its organisers.
Lancashire Police interrupted the birthday party, at a house in Wigan Road, Ormskirk, near Liverpool, at about 2.45am on Sunday.
A spokesman for the force said several people fled the scene when officers arrived, including some who jumped out of a window.
Body-worn footage shows one of the party-goers, who are believed to be Edge Hill University students, telling police: ‘We’ve been bored and we want to have fun.’
His friend then complains ‘we’ve been in lockdown for ages’ before being taken away.
The organiser of the party was located by officers and will be issued with the £10,000 fixed penalty notice, the force said.
In the footage, she can be seen telling officers the party was supposed to be a ‘little gathering’.
She says: ‘How do you expect a 20-year-old girl to pay £10,000 for this?’ She then adds: ‘It’s not worth £10,000.’
A Lancashire police spokesman said nine people at the house were given an £800 fixed penalty notice as a result of new regulations which came into force on Friday and allow an increased fine to be issued to anybody attending a house party of 15 people or more.
Another man was arrested after an officer was pushed, the force said.
Sam Taiwo, 23, of Bellhouse Road, Sheffield, has since been charged with assaulting a police officer and is due to appear at Preston Magistrates’ Court on April 1.
Superintendent Karen Edwards, of Lancashire Police, said: ‘This weekend, new coronavirus regulations were introduced, enabling police to issue increased fines to those in attendance at larger house parties.
‘Officers who attended the party in Ormskirk used these powers, and as a result several fixed penalty notices were given out.
‘This party was a blatant breach of the current restrictions, which are in place to prevent the virus from spreading and to keep everybody safe.
‘It is unbelievably selfish for anyone to believe they are exempt when so many law-abiding citizens have not seen their friends and family properly in almost a year.
‘The people in attendance also gave no thought to the safety of the local community or the officers who had to attend to break up the gathering, not to mention the NHS which is under immense strain.
‘It is also shocking that an officer reported being assaulted while dealing with the aftermath of the event.’
A spokesman for Edge Hill University said: ‘We are fully co-operating and working closely with the police to establish the details.
‘This is completely unacceptable behaviour and we will be taking appropriate action in line with our disciplinary procedures.
‘We cannot pre-empt the outcome of these investigations or predict any final sanctions that might be imposed; however, the university is able to exclude students in the most serious cases.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.