Police Break Up House Party Attended By 250 In Gloucester Twp.

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Gloucester Township police broke up a house party attended by 250 people who weren’t wearing masks over the weekend, amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The for-profit pool party was thrown at a home on Prospect Court three days after police contacted the homeowner to warn him about throwing the party, police said.

However, homeowner Jeffrey Davis Jr. and promoter Marheem Miller went ahead and threw the party on Sunday, Gloucester Township police said Monday evening.

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The party went on for five hours, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., police said. During that time, no one was wearing masks, there was no social distancing and loud music was being played in violation of township ordinance, police said. Eight cars were also ticketed for parking violations.

Officers asked Davis to stop the party. Upon leaving, those who attended the party littered the street with trash, police said. Public Works responded to clean the area Monday morning, police said.

Police issued a warning against having large gatherings on Aug. 6. The same day, they contacted Davis to warn him against throwing the party, saying it would violate both New Jersey Executive Orders, laws, and Gloucester Township Local Ordinances for having a promoted party amid the coronavirus pandemic. Read more here: Gloucester Twp. Police Warn Against Large Parties Amid Pandemic

Police said they were monitoring the home the day of the party and observed the violations.

Davis, 31 of Sicklerville, and Miller, 28 of Camden, were each charged with three counts of violating the governor’s executive orders. Davis was also issued a summons for littering. In addition, the Gloucester Township Zoning Officer will issue a summons for violating the local zoning ordinance, police said.

The investigation is continuing with referrals being made to the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, New Jersey Alcoholic Beverage Control, Camden County Health Department, the New Jersey Division of Taxation, and the US Internal Revenue Service.

The party took place two weeks after a string of other large gatherings were reported in the area. A house party in Middletown on July 11 led to 65 new positive cases of coronavirus in town, with 52 of them in young people under the age of 19. Over 700 guests in Jackson crowded a local Airbnb on July 26, and on Long Beach Island, 35 coronavirus cases were associated with an after hours social gathering of lifeguards earlier in the month. Read more: COVID Trouble: 3 NJ Gatherings, Dozens Of New Cases

On the same day, police broke up a gathering of more than 300 people in Howell. Read more here: Police Break Up Party Of Over 300 In Howell

See related: NJ Coronavirus, Reopen Updates: Here's What You Need To Know