Victoria police issued $2,530 worth of tickets to residents for house parties Saturday evening.
VicPD Chief Del Manak tweeted Sunday that two separate COVID-19 tickets were issued after two separate calls – with one party receiving $2,300 in fines and the other receiving a $230 ticket.
Manak wrote that hosts lied to police about who they were, the number of guests, and hid people in bedrooms and closets.
“Best tip, don’t host a party in the first place,” he wrote.
READ ALSO: Partying Victoria-area youth told police they are ‘immune’ to COVID-19
Police responded to the first party shortly after 11 p.m. after receiving reports of a loud party in a multi-unit residential building in the 100-block of South Turner Street.
There, a resident of the suite told officers there were four people inside and two were not members of the household. VicPD said police were given permission to enter and found one man hiding in a bedroom – on the floor at the end of a bed – and another man hiding in a closet.
With four people from outside the household inside, the hosts had contravened the province’s Gathering and Events Order. The hosts were served a $2,300-ticket under the COVID-19 Related Measures Act and all non-residents were ordered to leave.
Just a few hours later, at around 12:30 a.m., police were called to another report of a loud party in a suite in a multi-unit residential building in the 1400-block of Hillside Avenue. When police arrived they saw that the suite’s windows were “fogged with condensation” and they could hear loud music and people yelling.
Police spoke with hosts and were told that there were five guests who were not residents. According to police, masks were not being worn and physical distancing was not taking place. The host was served a $230-violation ticket for a non-compliant gathering.
Currently, the provincial health officer’s Gathering and Events Order bans gatherings that include any outside individuals regardless of whether the people work together or are inside the same “bubble.”
In August, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said that in cases of “particularly egregious contraventions” or repeat offences, police can recommend charges.
READ ALSO: COVID-19: B.C. imposes $2,000 fines for uncontrolled party organizers
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