Police have shut down an unlicensed music event in Thetford forest, making a number of arrests and seizing sound equipment.

Specialist officers from Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire were deployed to close down the event, which had 500 people in attendance with around 100 vehicles on site.
More than 100 police officers were deployed to the scene and entered the site, closing it down at 6.30pm.

Police were called at about 11.20pm last night (28 August) after a member of the public reported seeing large numbers of cars queuing to access a fire route. Officers attended and an unlicensed music event was found in an isolated area of the forest, near to the English Heritage site Grimes Graves.

A number of resources including the drone unit, National Police Air Service helicopter, dogs and specially trained public order officers worked to close down the event in a safe and controlled manner.

A large number of people are still at the site and efforts are continuing to move people on. A number of people have been arrested and officers are using the new powers available to them. Investigations are underway to identify the event organiser.

Assistant Chief Constable Nick Davison, who continues to lead the operation, said: “Due to the number of people in attendance, we needed specialist teams to enter the site to close it down. Officers trained in public order, experienced in dealing with such events, entered the site and turned the music off around 6.30pm.

“I would like to thank local residents for their patience and understanding while we brought this to an end. We know these events cause disruption which is why we’ve taken positive action to make sure the event didn’t go on into a second night. Due to the nature of the location and numbers of people in attendance, this was a challenging event to disrupt and required mutual aid from other forces which takes time to arrange.

“Officers did meet some hostility when entering the site with bottles and cans used as missiles and thrown at officers. Fortunately, no one was injured.

“It’s extremely disappointing to see these types of events taking place when coronavirus continues to be a real threat to our communities. We’re working to identify the organisers and will do everything within our power, where evidence is available, to prosecute and bring them to justice.”