Ten police officers who took part in an illegal lockdown party have each been fined £200.
The party, held at a house in Hove on May 15 – two days before people were allowed in each other’s houses – became so rowdy their colleagues were called to break it up.
The ten officers are still under investigation by the force’s professional standards department, which could lead to separate disciplinary action.
Chief Superintendent Nick May said: We take covid-related breaches very seriously and we do not tolerate this kind of behaviour which falls below the standards we expect of our officers and staff.”
At the time, a source told Brighton and Hove News: “They had a large house party on their day off. It got so rowdy that police were called and found their colleagues in the address in numbers that breached the current covid rules.
“Then to make matters worse, an off duty officer started shouting their mouth off at the responders.
“Body worn footage was turned off and then they were all pulled into the office and screamed at.”
Last month, student Andrew Murtymoodoo successfully defended himself against charges of organising a lockdown party at his shared student house in Norwich Drive, Bevendean, for which he was originally fined £10,000.
Several more students were handed £200 fines in January after campus parties.
Meanwhile, other lockdown party cases have been appearing at Brighton Magistrates Court, with one woman fined £220, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £34 and costs of £120 for attending a party in Stanford Road, Brighton on 30 December, 2020.
And a Saltdean man was fined the same amount for attending a party at the 42b Providence Place Studio on 13 November, 2020.
Well, it’s a variant – as it were – on a Vicars and Tarts party.
Ten thousand quid for some, but only £200 for the highly-paid useless thugs that imposed the “fines” (which aren’t really fines, so are unenforceable if people understand the law).