Man visiting his friend for a cup of tea is fined by police for breaking Covid lockdown rules after he lied about why he was there
- The man visited a friend’s house in Lowton near Wigan for a drink on Friday night
- Officers confirm he was issued with fixed penalty which is £200 for first offence
- Man tried to lie about why he was there after he was discovered by the police
A man has been fined by the police after breaking coronavirus lockdown rules to visit his friend for a cup of tea – then lying about what he had done.
The man visited a friend’s house in Lowton near Wigan for a drink on Friday night, and officers confirmed he was issued with a fixed penalty.
After discovering that he’d broken the rules, police said the man ‘tried to lie about why he was there’, reports the Mirror.
The man visited a friend’s house in Lowton near Wigan for a cup of tea on Friday night, and officers confirmed he was issued with a fixed penalty (stock image used)
Under the current lockdown, you are not allowed to socialise with anyone indoors unless they are from the same household as you or in your support bubble.
People aged 18 or over in England who get a fixed penalty notice will have to pay £200 if it is their first one. This is reduced to £100 if they pay within £14 days.
It is £400 for the second offence and this doubles for each subsequent offence up to a maximum fine of £6,400.
In a Facebook post, officers from GMP’s Golborne and Lowton team said: ‘As a follow on from yesterdays post reminding you we are currently in Lockdown 2.0 as they say and under Government restrictions, a fixed penalty was issued to a male last night who decided he was going to see his mate and have a brew with him and to make matters worse he tried to lie about why he was there.
‘You cannot go to another persons address unless for certain exemptions i.e. child care, support bubble etc. full details are available on line.’
From November 5, when the lockdown started, you can only meet someone not in your household in an outdoor public space – and this is limited to just one person.
After discovering that he’d broken the rules, police said the man ‘tried to lie about why he was there’ (stock image used)
All restaurants, pubs, cafes and other hospitality venues are currently closed unless they offer a takeaway service.
Non-essential shops are also closed apart from for click and collect.
However, schools and universities remain open, as do services like dentists, garden centres and supermarkets.