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NSW Police make 30 arrests as partygoers scoff at COVID lockdown

A woman was treated for leg, pelvis and spinal injuries after a police car struck her.

A woman was treated for leg, pelvis and spinal injuries after a police car struck her. Photo: ABC News

A house party with more than 60 people has been broken up by police in western Sydney for breaching coronavirus restrictions on gatherings.

Police went to a home on Nottingham Street in Schofields about 11.30pm on Saturday after complaints of a noisy party and ended up using pepper spray when a brawl broke out inside the home involving 15 people.

Officers on the scene sought assistance from neighbouring commands in Mt Druitt, Hawkesbury, Blacktown, The Hills and Nepean.

A helicopter the airwing, PolAir, a team from the Dog Unit, and OSG officers from North West and South West Metropolitan Regions, to manage the crowd many of whom were intoxicated.

“OC spray was deployed when a brawl broke out inside the home involving 15 people, and officers entered the building,” police said in a statement.

“Three males were taken to Blacktown Hospital, two for minor injuries sustained in the brawl and a third for the effects of alcohol.”

Officers said they arrested 30 people for refusing to move on and they intend to issue up to 60 people with COVID-19-related infringement notices of $1000.

Gatherings are currently restricted to not more than 20 people in both outdoor settings and within a home.

Superintendent Donna McCarthy said police will not tolerate the people of NSW being put at risk.

“This is a very unfortunate situation for police to have to deal with … and it’s the opposite of what we would expect of our community,” Supt McCarthy told reporters in Sydney on Sunday.

“We’ve been very clear, there’ll be no more warnings in relation to this.
“We will take action and we won’t tolerate the people of NSW being made unsafe.”

Those who refused police requests to move on will be slapped with an additional fine, Supt McCarthy said.

Transport Minister Andrew Constance said those involved have put all of NSW at risk.

“Think about what you’ve just done – you’ve just put an entire state at risk, over eight million citizens at risk by doing that,” Mr Constance told reporters in Sydney on Sunday.

“This is not a time for partying, we are in a very difficult circumstance as a nation and as a state.

“I just ask everybody, just cool your jets for a while, and let’s just get through this because if we follow the advice (that) is there to keep us safe.”

-AAP

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