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New York City officials shut down a wedding event with nearly 300 guests on Friday night at a venue in Woodside, Queens.
At roughly 11:30 p.m., deputies from the Queens County Sheriff's Department received an anonymous complaint about a social distancing violation on Garfield Avenue, according to NBC 4 New York. When authorities arrived at the Royal Elite Palace Caterers that night, they reported "large groups of people entering the location through what appears to be an indoor parking area as well as loud music coming from the location."
The NYC Sheriff's Department tweeted that there were 284 guests illegally gathered at the event. The location had "one means of egress, violation of emergency orders and unlicensed security," the Sheriff's Department wrote. Guests were packed inside the venue while eating, drinking, and dancing to a live band with no face coverings or regard for social distancing.
9/25/20 @ 2330HRS: Deputy Sheriffs shut down illegal gathering @ 69-02 Garfield Ave, Queens: 284 people inside, location had one means of egress, violation of emergency orders & unlicensed security. 2 charged with multiple offenses. pic.twitter.com/yW39Mpl9nn
— NYC SHERIFF (@NYCSHERIFF) September 26, 2020
The wedding guests were sent home immediately upon the county sheriffs' arrival and two Royal Palace employees were reportedly taken into custody.
Officials say the venue's manager, Paata Sichinava, received four desk appearance tickets, and owner Aba Cohen received a pair of summonses. They both face potential fines if found guilty at their respective court hearings.
The venue has reportedly hosted several illegal gatherings—mostly weddings—in the past few months, despite strict COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings and face coverings in NYC. The Royal Palace location on Instagram shows large weddings and events hosted at the venue, with what appears to be hundreds of partiers gathering indoors as recently as September 15.
The wedding event in Woodside comes as coronavirus cases spike in the state, with more than 1,000 New Yorkers reported testing positive on Saturday, according to Governor Andrew Cuomo. This marks the first time since June 5 that the daily number of positive cases was that high.
The number of positive results reported daily has been steadily increasing in New York in recent weeks, with spikes in Brooklyn and Queens. Of the cases reported in New York State, 429 were in New York City. Since the start of the pandemic, the city has seen over 240,000 positive cases and more than 23,000 deaths.
"It's vital that New Yorkers continue to practice the basic behaviors that drive our ability to fight COVID-19 as we move into the fall and flu season," said Cuomo in a statement on Saturday morning. "Wearing masks, socially distancing and washing hands make a critical difference, as does the deliberate enforcement of state guidance by local governments."
Although Woodside—where the wedding event was held—is not in a red zone for increasing cases, it is close. The cluster zones include Brooklyn neighborhoods like Williamsburg, Midwood, Borough Park, Flatbush and Bensonhurst, as well as Kew Gardens and Edgemere-Far Rockaway in Queens.
Newsweek reached out to Queens County Sheriff's Department and Royal Elite Palace, but did not receive a response in time for publication.
