Police shut down illegal rave in Epping Forest as 500 lockdown revellers keep angry residents awake

Police shut down an illegal rave last night after 500 lockdown revellers kept residents awake until the early hours of this morning with loud music.

Met Police officers were called out to the Epping Forest to put a stop to the rave which broke coronavirus restrictions on the number of people allowed to gather in one place.

Under current government guidelines it is against the law for groups of more than 30 to gather in a private home or outside space, unless planned by an organisation in compliance with coronavirus guidelines.

At around 2.30am this morning a Met Police spokesperson said that efforts to shut down the rave had been ‘relatively successful’ and that the illegal event was ‘coming to a close’.

In a video recorded last night at the scene of the illegal rave, the huge crowd of lockdown revellers can be seen packed tightly together in the forest.

Large speakers were blasting out loud music and lights had been threaded through tree branches above the ravers.

Nearby residents filed eight noise complaints overnight before officers were able to shut down the rave which was located in the heart of Epping Forest.

An unofficial organiser for the event said that they went deep into the forest and used the noise of the nearby A406 North Circular road to try cover some of the sound from the music. 

Officers thanked the local community for their patience and reassured those living in the area that they understood the impact events like the rave can have.

Before the rave police had been warning people not to attend the rave because of ‘safety and COVID risks’.

After the rave was broken up police were called out to deal with a number of reports of drunk people walking along the A406.