New York City cops bust a marijuana party in Manhattan as party-goers flout strict coronavirus lockdown rules
- Police issued summonses to 38 people for breaching the lockdown measures
- The illegal gathering took place in Manhattan’s Flatiron District on Monday
- It was allegedly hosted by a marijuana edibles company called ‘Ganga Pigs’
- Learn more about how to help people impacted by COVID
Cops in New York City have broken up a marijuana party as members of the public continue to flout strict coronavirus social distancing measures.
Officers were called to the party following a tip-off and found the third-floor gathering in a vacant commercial building on West 23rd Street in Manhattan’s Flatiron District.
Local media are reporting that the gathering involved marijuana on the unofficially-titled ‘4/20’ holiday of April 20. The party was allegedly hosted by a marijuana edibles company called ‘Ganja Pigs’, NBC New York said.
Police said they summonsed a total of 38 people, including 31 men and five women, for criminal trespassing after breaking up the illegal gathering.
As some red state governors consider relaxing social distancing policies, New York City police arrest two men who had allegedly taken part in an illegal gathering of more than two dozen people
The party took place amid the city’s current lockdown to help curb the spread of Covid-19. Social distancing has been a requirement for weeks in New York City – which is the epicenter of the county’s coronavirus storm
Local media are reporting that the gathering involved marijuana on the unofficially-titled ‘4/20’ holiday of April 20. The party was allegedly hosted by a marijuana edibles company called ‘Ganja Pigs’
They broke up the party because participants were flouting social distancing rules amid the coronavirus pandemic, and not because of the presence of marijuana, ABCNews reported.
Party members were caught smoking marijuana and socialising within six feet of each other. Police said they also recovered pills, money and bootlegged alcohol.
The party was named ‘Animal House Party 5’ on Instagram and promoted throughout social media, according to police.
Five people at the gathering were also given summonses relating to marijuana.
Above, New York City police arrest a man who had allegedly taken part in the illegal gathering
The illegal gathering came despite New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently extending New York’s coronavirus lockdown by two weeks, until May 15
Social distancing is one of the city’s current requirements to help curb the spread of Covid-19 and has been a requirement for weeks in New York City – which is the epicenter of the county’s coronavirus storm.
In New York City alone, more than 14,600 people have died as a result of the coronavirus, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently extended New York’s coronavirus lockdown by two weeks until May 15.
Cuomo said last Thursday that while the rate of hospitalizations in New York is decreasing, it was unclear how many people had actually been infected with COVID-19.
He said the unknown tally of infections is stopping him from reopening the economy.
People who don’t know they are infected return to work, they risk infecting countless others and erasing the progress that has been made so far.
Cuomo said: ‘The close down has worked. However, we’re not there yet. ‘We have to continue. I’d like to see that infection rate get down even more. I don’t want to project beyond that period – that’s one month. What happens after then, I don’t know. We will see depending on what the data shows.’