Teenager apologises for hosting illegal house party after £10,000 fine
The 19-year-old sent a handwritten note to neighbours in Nottingham
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A teenager who was fined £10,000 for holding a house party with over 50 guests has apologised to his neighbours for breaking coronavirus regulations.
The 19-year-old student said in a handwritten note that the "foolish gathering" at his home in Lenton, Nottingham, had "got out of hand".
He claimed that he and his housemates had invited only 25 friends to the 21st birthday celebration to make sure it stayed below the limit on social gatherings- only for dozens more to turn up unexpectedly.
"It was never our intention to disrupt your evening," the teenager added. "It was a major lapse in judgement on our end given both the disturbance we caused as well as the current pandemic that is taking a toll on our society... We are eager to make amends."
Nottinghamshire Police said the student will have to appear in court if he fails to pay up or appeals against the penalty.
Assistant Chief Constable Steve Cooper said he wanted to send a "clear message" to anyone else thinking of hosting parties ahead of the rule change which reduces the limit on gatherings to six from Monday.
“This party was a clear example of a householder who deliberately flouted the rules without a care for anyone else and as a result we have used the full powers we have to deal with this."
Police were first alerted to the party by a complaint from neighbours at 10.20pm.
City council officers were first to arrive, only to be "met with hostility from the organiser", the force said in a statement.
When police turned up to assist they found more than 50 people inside the house and ordered them all to leave.
The student has since been named in articles in several national newspaper, along with photographs taken from his Instagram account.
Amy English, Neighbourhood Policing Inspector for City Central, said: "In this case the resident also had the chance to shut the party down when they were first visited by our council colleagues.
"Despite blatantly breaching the regulations, there's no doubt in my mind that not everyone attending would have been social distancing which is irresponsible and puts everyone's health at risk. We must take these incidents seriously."
However one neighbour described the £10,000 fine “absolutely ridiculous” and told the BBC: "We were all students once".