POLICE have fined 12 members of a football team who broke the Covid safety rules – after they visited a pub for a beer together, and lied about being from the same household.
The team were out in South Tyneside on Sunday night when a concerned staff member challenged them, only to be told by the men they were from the same household.
Unconvinced, the staff called the police to report the breach, and when officers attended the men were all issued with £200 fines – meaning their round cost them a whopping £2,400 in total.
Police refused to identify the team involved, or the pub where they were caught.
Chief Superintendent Janice Hutton, from Northumbria Police, said: “This group showed a flagrant disregard for the rules which are in place to help prevent the spread of Coronavirus.
“Actions like this undermine the efforts being made by the majority of others in order to protect themselves, their family, friends and wider communities.”
She added: “We will continue to work closely with our communities and offer advice to people who have mistakenly broken the restrictions.
“However, as we have made clear, where individuals are choosing to ignore the measures in place, we are committed to taking enforcement action to protect our communities.
“It’s important we all continue to play our part and follow the restrictions.”
For more information about Covid-19 and the latest restrictions, please visit your local council website.