Man fined £10,000 for organising illegal rave in Thetford Forest

A man involved in organising an illegal rave in Thetford Forest has been fined £10,000 for breaching coronavirus rules.

More than 500 people were at the rave near the English Heritage site Grimes Graves on Saturday 29 August.

It took 100 police officers from all over the region to close it down - police said they were pelted with bottles and cans by people at the event.

It took police until 6.30pm the following day to bring the event to an end.

Three men were arrested at the scene and each issued with a £100 fine. Another man was later arrested following the event and also issued with a £100 fine.

On Wednesday (4 November 2020) a 23-year-old man from the Newmarket area was given a fixed penalty notice and fined £10,000 for being involved in the organisation or facilitation of an event of 30 or more people.

In September he voluntarily attended Bury St Edmunds Police Investigation Centre where he was interviewed. This week he was issued with the £10,000 fixed penalty notice.

Police said it had taken weeks to bring the organisers to justice and they deplored their decision to stage the event at a time when coronavirus remained a serious threat.

"I hope this sends out a very strong message that the police acting in the interests of our communities and those at the highest risk from COVID-19 will not tolerate this type of irresponsible and selfish behaviour.”

Officers were alerted to the event at about 11.20pm on Saturday 29 August 2020 when a member of the public reported seeing large numbers of cars queuing to access a fire route. More than 500 people attended the event and there were 100 vehicles on site.

In addition to the arrests and fines, officers also seized audio equipment, generators, the rig and a large flat-bed lorry that was used to transport the equipment.