NEWARK, N.J. (1010 WINS) -- Police in Newark broke up an illegal warehouse party with more than 200 attendees over the weekend — a gathering Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday called "incredibly irresponsible."
Officers responding to several 911 calls around 12 a.m. on Sunday found Denisse Tinizaray, 26, and Katherine Tinizaray, 28, both of Newark, serving alcoholic drinks at a "makeshift bar" inside a warehouse on Libella Court, near Chapel Street, Newark's Department of Public Safety said.
More than 200 patrons inside the warehouse were eating food, drinking alcohol and illegally gambling, in violation of the state's COVID-19 restrictions, the department said.
Neither of the bartenders had a license to sell alcohol, according to the department. They were arrested and charged with maintaining an illegal alcohol establishment, illegal possession of alcohol and illegal sale of alcohol, police said.
Their attorney information wasn't immediately available Monday.
At a news briefing Monday afternoon, Murphy called the party "incredibly irresponsible."
"Two hundred people in close quarters, presumably not wearing masks, that's not a good fact set," he said. "How they are able to contact trace coming out of something like that… that's going to be hard."
Murphy on Monday reported 2,745 new positive COVID-19 test results and 21 new virus-related fatalities, bringing the state's case total to 463,965 and its death toll to 16,706.
As of Sunday night, 3,684 New Jerseyans were hospitalized with COVID-19, 715 of whom were in intensive care and 505 of whom were on ventilators.
