London, (Asian independent) A total of 72 people will face fixed penalty notices of 800 pounds ($1,096) for breaching coronavirus restrictions by attending a boat party in London, according to a media report.
Police were called shortly late Saturday night after reports of a large gathering on a moored boat in Ealing, a district in western London, Xinhua news agency quoted the Sky News report as saying on Sunday.
The organiser has been identified and will face a fine of 10,000 pounds, according to the report.
“This was a blatant breach of the coronavirus rules that are in place to save lives and protect the huge pressure on the NHS (National Health Service),” Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Bowen said in a statement.
“All the people who attended this event, which appears to have been organised on social media, have quite rightly been reported for the consideration of fines.
“The Met (Police) will continue to shut down and disperse events such as this, which risk spreading a virus that has already claimed the lives of more than 100,000 people in this country,” he added.
England is currently under the third national lockdown since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country.
Similar restriction measures are also in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
As of Monday morning, the UK’s overall coronavirus caseload has increased to 3,828,183, while the death toll stood at 106,367.