international news _ 16th May, 2006

UK Rave Cops Tighten The Noose

Text by Jonty Skrufff (Skrufff.com)

West Country cops announced this week that they'll be maintaining they're now annual anti-rave operation at Smeatharpe airfield near Glastonbury despite the music festival not taking place and the fact they have no intelligence of raves planned for the area.

"We now have powers to stop events and, if necessary, seize equipment. The message to any organisers of events in the force are is that we will not shy away from doing so and we are ready to deal robustly with unlawful gatherings," Chief Inspector Richard Baker told the North Devon Gazette.

"I would ask that if anyone has suspicions that their land is being visited by people planning a rave that they let the police know in good time, in order that we may take the appropriate action," he added.

Last year, police set up a similar 5 mile exclusion zone around Smeathorpe allowing them to arrest any suspected revellers who disobeyed orders to leave and the latest plan was announced as cops in East Anglia seized equipment from a party in Elveden Forest.

"A quantity of sound equipment was seized and police will now examine videos of the event with a view to proceedings against those responsible for the event," a police spokeswoman told the Bury St Edmunds Free Press.