Riot police are attacked by ravers as they shut down illegal party

Footage of a 500-person illegal rave has been released by police in Thetford after an officer was attacked over the Bank Holiday weekend.

More than a hundred police officers broke up the mass rave in Thetford woods on Saturday night.

Ariel footage shows cars parked around the rave and a huge stage, complete with giant speakers and flashing lights, can be seen in a clearing.

One clip shows an unknown man dressed in black clothing running towards an officer in full riot gear. 

The man kicked the officer before running away. 

Officers seized audio equipment, generators, the rig and a large flat-bed lorry which was used to transport the equipment.

Five people were arrested and fined £100 for attending the unlicensed music event.

Investigations are underway to identify the event organiser, who could face a £10,000 fine under new legislation which came into effect on August 28.

The legislation brought in harsher punishment for organisers and attendees of illegal gatherings.

Assistant Chief Constable Nick Davison, of Norfolk Police, said: ‘We understand the disruption such events cause to local communities and the concern people will have, particularly as coronavirus continues to be a real threat.’

‘This was a well-established and planned event and we needed additional specialist resources to shut it down safely.’

‘I would like to thank local residents once again for their patience and understanding while we worked to close it down.’

He added that police investigations are ongoing to trace the organisers and these enquiries are progressing well. 

It comes after a huge illegal lockdown rave near a Welsh village was finally shut down by police.

Some 3,000 revellers descended on an area of woodland near the village of Banwen on the early hours of Sunday morning – with 400 ravers still at the site by Monday evening.

But South Wales Police have now managed to shut down the rave after around 70 officers, assisted by Dyfed-Powys Police and the British Transport Police, were called out to the wood to execute a dispersal order.

Summons have been issued to 22 ravers, which could see them slapped with £10,000 fines.

Assistant chief constable David Thorne wrote on Twitter: ‘Rave at Banwen is over! South Wales Police, Dyfed-Powys Police [and] British Transport Police teams have done a fantastic job this weekend of clearing this huge area from the 3,000 strong illegal gathering. Thank you to all involved.’  

Locals voiced complaints about the illegal music festival after rubbish was dumped and ravers defecated over the site.   

Village residents say they have been kept awake since 1am when crowds began to gather in a nearby forest, with some saying they felt like ‘prisoners in their own home’. 

Superintendent Jason James said illegal events like the one in Banwen ‘have a significant impact on the community’.

He added: ‘Those gathering know that their actions are irresponsible and we are working with other agencies and utilising the legislation available to us including Covid-19 legislation but we need to ensure that any action taken is done so safely.’

Hundreds left their cars and vans parked illegally, obstructing roads throughout the village.

One woman who attended the rave this morning said she’d driven all the way from London to take part.

She said: ‘I’ve come from Lewisham in London and we travelled up following the party line and it’s been absolutely bloody fantastic. Met nothing but lovely people here as always.

‘That’s the thing about these events, everybody you meet is absolutely splendid and lovely and it’s all good vibes. There’s nothing bad to be said about these kinds of things to be honest.’ 

New rules to crack down on mass gatherings came into force on Friday – leading to £90,000-worth of fines issued by Sunday night.

The regulations – with were put in place ahead of the bank holiday weekend – gave police the power to hand out £10,000 fines. 

Earlier, West Yorkshire Police said eight people were fined £10,000 after several parties across Headingley and Burley on Saturday and into the early hours of Sunday. 

One man was fined £10,000 for a Headingley house party. Another gathering in the same area lead to four people being slapped with the enormous fee, Sky News reports.

Two DJs were fined £10,000 each in Burley.

Jeremy Corbyn’s brother Piers has been handed the first £10,000 fine in London for an illegal gathering after he organised a march claiming coronavirus is a hoax.

The 73-year-old meteorologist led more than 10,000 anti-lockdown protesters at the ‘Unite for Freedom’ rally in Trafalgar Square on Saturday.

Mr Corbyn, the older brother of the former Labour leader, was seen being hauled off by officers after the event and his Twitter account has since confirmed he was slapped with the colossal fine and ‘held for ten hours.’ 

Meanwhile, thousands of pounds worth of equipment has also been seized in the police crackdown.

The force seized what they believe to be around £20,000 of music equipment from a garden at an address in the Chapeltown area of Leeds on Sunday which officers suspect was being kept for an unlicensed music event.

It came after Essex Police said it had also seized thousands of pounds’ worth of equipment – but did not give an exact figure – ahead of an unlicensed music event the force said 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.

He said: ‘My final message is to the organisers: we will seize the equipment – I don’t care if you’ve hired it from someone or if it’s yours, we will break up your event, and we can now fine you up to £10,000.’