WOODBURY, NJ — Large gatherings in the Woodbury area drew police to "pop-up" parties where they arrested groups of people over two days in August, the Woodbury City Police Department said.
On August 15, police learned of an event in the 100 block of High St. where a large group of people had loud music playing in a backyard.
The host declared the party over and proceeded to dismiss guests. This caused the group to file out into the street.
Many of these guests were juveniles, officials added.
Large collections of these attendees then dispersed across multiple areas throughout the city, and caused "several quality-of-life issues" that included trespassing, assaults, and harassment.
Individuals did not cooperate with authorities, police said, and led officers to arrest and relocate multiple people over several hours.
Three adults who lived at one of the properties and a landlord were charged with 24 counts each of failure to supervise, disorderly conduct, breach of peace, four counts of maintaining nuisance property, and eight counts of occupancy standards violations.
On August 22, police learned of another "pop-up party" in the 400 block of Prince St.
As guests arrived, they created a "public inconvenience" and "safety issue" for the community, according to officials.
After the party was shut down, officers were left with a "massive" number of minors and young adults who stayed around the area and tried to relocate.
These groups were unwilling to cooperate with authorities for hours after officers said they tried to help them get transportation to leave the area.
Multiple minors had charges pending and homeowners were also charged with two counts each of enabling/offering alcoholic beverages to minors, parental responsibility, four counts of disorderly conduct, and four counts of breach of peace.
"Any individual who is found to assist in promoting the event will be charged accordingly as well," Woodbury City Police added in their message to the community.
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