Police officers responded to reports of a major meeting at a school in north London on Thursday night, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement on Friday.
When they entered the facility at Stamford Hill, the statement said, they found hundreds of people together, violating Covid-19 regulations.
Wedding ceremonies can only take place with up to six people present, according to English government guidelines, and wedding receptions are prohibited under ongoing national control.
“This was a completely unacceptable violation of the law, which is clearly in place to save lives and protect the NHS,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Marcus Barnett in a statement.
“People across the country are making sacrifices by canceling or postponing weddings and other celebrations and there is no excuse for that kind of behavior.”
The police said the school’s windows were covered to prevent people from seeing the interior, and many participants “left when the police arrived”.
Hackney Mayor Philip Glanville confirmed that the event took place at Yesodey Hatorah Senior Girls’ School. The school did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment, but the BBC said the school said its facilities had been rented.
A school spokesman told the BBC, “We didn’t know that the wedding was going on.”
He added: “We are absolutely horrified by last night’s event and we condemn it in the strongest terms possible.”
Its former director, Rabbi Avrohom Pinter, died in April last year after contracting the coronavirus.
In addition to fining the event organizer, the police issued £ 200 ($ 274) fines to five other participants.
“I am deeply disappointed that events of this nature are still happening in Stamford Hill, despite the very serious pandemic situation we are in and the number of lives that have already been lost in the Charedi community and across the district,” said Glanville. in the declaration.
“We will be meeting with Rabbinato and our community partners in the coming days to see how we can prevent further incidents of this nature.”
Stamford Hill is home to a large ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, some of its members have been criticized for breaking the rules of social detachment.
Community leaders expressed disappointment at hearing previous reports that suggested 400 people were present.
The Metropolitan Police said on Friday afternoon that “although initial calls suggested that about 400 people attended the wedding, it is now believed that approximately 150 people attended.”
Rabbi Herschel Gluck, president of Stamford Hill Shomrim’s voluntary civilian patrols, asked people to follow the rules.
“This is a time of unity, people should try to think of each other and keep each other safe,” he told CNN by phone on Friday.
“At a time when we are all making great sacrifices, this amounts to a blatant revocation of the responsibility to protect life and this illegal behavior is hated by the overwhelming majority of the Jewish community,” he added.
The British Jews’ Council of Deputies also said they “unreservedly condemn this blatant and shameful violation of Covid-19 regulations, which runs counter to Jewish teaching that preserving life is of the highest value”.
“We are horrified by the news,” they added.
On Thursday, British Home Secretary Priti Patel announced fines of £ 800 ($ 1,100) for dealing with people who continue to ignore coronavirus restrictions by attending events and meetings.
“The science is clear: this irresponsible behavior poses a significant threat to public health,” said Patel during a news conference in Downing Street.
“Not just to those present, but to our wonderful policemen who come to these events to close them,” he added. “As this last measure demonstrates, we will not stand still while a small number of individuals put others at risk.”