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Police Raid Birthday Party Because It Was Advertised On Facebook

07.17.2009 - Riot police raid 30th barbecue because man used Facebook to invite his friends

If you're hosting a barbecue on your 30th birthday, you wouldn't want it to be spoiled by afternoon rain. And it goes without saying that you wouldn't want a police helicopter to descend down on the field where you're grilling and for officers decked out in riot gear to bust your party. But that's exactly what happened to Andrew Poole on his 30th birthday.

"It had started to rain so we had gone in under the gazebo. All of a sudden there was this noise in the sky. I honestly couldn't believe it," said Andrew regarding the moment he noticed the police helicopter. "The thing then hovered over us for about 25 minutes, watching 15 people eat. They told us to take down the sound system and said everybody's got to leave. The police had full-on camouflage trousers on and body-armour, it was ridiculous. It was on private land. We were nowhere near anyone. We weren't even playing any music. What effectively the police did was come in and stop fifteen people eating burgers."

The police, concerned that the party was actually a rave because it had been advertised on Facebook as an all-night event, claim that their measures were justified.

"The decision to close down a rave or illegal music festival is not taken lightly. On this occasion, we were extremely concerned how the event had been advertised on the internet as an all-night party and it was therefore necessary to take the appropriate steps," said a police spokesperson.

This just goes to show you, Britons, be careful what you advertise on Facebook, the police is watching. They don't call it the Nanny State for nothing, you know.

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