LONDON, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- A Manchester man was fined 10,000 pounds (about 13,158 U.S. dollars) for breaking COVID-19 lockdown rules by throwing party with 60 people at his two-bedroom flat, local media has reported.

Officers were called to reports of a disturbance at a residential property in The Works, Withy Grove in Manchester city center, at around 00: 30 a.m. (0030 GMT) last Sunday, according to media reports Saturday.

Greater Manchester Police said they found around 50 to 60 people inside a two-bedroom flat. None of them were social distancing or wearing face coverings while music was blaring through a sound system which included commercial-sized speakers, said the reports.

Following a review of the evidence, the 38-year-old organiser was issued a 10,000-pound (13,158 dollars) fixed penalty notice Friday for "contravening the requirement not to hold, or be involved in the holding of, a gathering of more than 30 persons in a private dwelling," Sky News reported.

Superintendent Chris Hill told local media that organising this flat party was "a clear act of non-compliance which put those in attendance at risk of COVID and could, ultimately, increase demand on the NHS (National Health Service)."

British Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said earlier that he supported clamping down on the "tiny minority" of people who are not willing to obey the lockdown, adding that there would be increased fines for repeat offenders.

Elsewhere, four people were issued with fines of 200 pounds (about 263.1 dollars) each after Kent Police officers broke up a party of around 20 people at an apartment in Canterbury, a city in southeast England.

Kent Police said the illegal gathering at the property in Adelaide Place was dispersed at around 1:30 a.m. (0130 GMT) on Thursday -- the same day England came into new national lockdown.

Under the lockdown rules, the second of its kind since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, people in England will only be allowed to leave their homes for specific reasons, such as education, work or food shopping.

Pubs, bars and restaurants will close across the country except for takeaways. Non-essential shops, hairdressers and leisure and entertainment venues will also be shut.

Unlike in the first lockdown, schools, colleges and universities will remain open and those who cannot work from home, such as construction or manufacturing workers, will be encouraged to continue going to their workplaces.

To bring life back to normal, countries, such as Britain, China, Russia and the United States, are racing against time to develop coronavirus vaccines. Enditem

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