Covid 19 Delta outbreak: Landlord yet to decide what will happen to tenants of North Shore party house

The future of the tenants who hosted a wild lockdown party on the North Shore remains uncertain with the landlord saying the first priority is making sure everyone is tested.

Owner Darsan Singh said the first she knew about the party was when media reports started to appear on Sunday.

Those reports described a wild night where dozens of young people partied into the wee hours of the morning – a move that angered not only neighbours who had to deal with excessive noise, but many in the wider community who have been religiously following lockdown rules.

“I just cried, it was my family home and I didn’t expect that kind of behaviour,” Singh told the Herald.

“They have broken the rules, that was the hardest thing that broke my heart.”

One person, a 28-year-old who allegedly hosted the party has since been charged, and with the police investigation ongoing it is possible others who attended will also face charges.

At least six tenants are believed to live at the rural Redvale home but it is not clear how many attended the party.

When the Herald visited on Monday an older woman said she lived there but she was at work during the party. The boss of another tenant said he had stayed upstairs in his room and was not been involved.

Singh was reluctant to speculate on the future of the tenants saying the police investigation was under way and she was taking legal advice.

She added any action against tenants, if she was to take any, would be a confidential process.

Her main priority at the moment was finding out the level of risk and making sure everyone who attended knew what to do in terms of testing and whether the house needed a deep clean.

“We are more concerned about everyone’s health, including the tenants’ health, so we are making sure we are following the procedures and they are safe and other people who came there (are too).”

It’s believed the tenants have been at the property for about a year. Before that the property was rented by families.

Locals say this isn’t the first time a large party has been held at the multi-storey home which has six bedrooms and four bathrooms.

“They are pretty well known for their large parties,” said one neighbour.

The last one was a few months ago when police were also called after it spilled onto the street and cars were drag racing.

Many partygoers have faced backlash for attending on Saturday night and at least two people have been dropped from the books of talent companies.

Several have since apologised online.

One, 23-year-old Jaydn McCarthy told the Herald he had received hundreds of hate messages for attending after he posted a video of the party that showed people crammed inside the house drinking, dancing, kissing and some even gyrating together on a tabletop.

He has since apologised and has proactively spoken to police saying he’s prepared to face the consequences of his actions.

“All I can really do is say how sorry I am and sincerely apologise to all the communities, the households for being at that party. I know my actions were irresponsible and placed a lot of people at risk.”

McCarthy, who has had both vaccinations, said he didn’t know the people who hosted the party but went there with friends about 8 or 9pm after being at a barbecue with nine other people at the Sugartree building in central Auckland earlier in the night.

While he was “a bit nervous” about going he still went with his friends – something he now regrets, especially on the back of all the hate messages.

“It does make me regret what I’ve done and really think about it and how much risk I’ve put on New Zealanders who have been trying hard to eliminate the whole Covid situation – here’s me coming along and just thinking I can do what I want. It’s understandable, I understand people are frustrated and what I did, it’s not right.”

A police spokesman said police have spoken to “a number of people” as part of their investigation into the party.

“Police are still making inquiries into this matter and are not ruling out further enforcement action.”

The spokesman said officers were not aware of any reports about threats being made to people who attended the party but urged anyone who had concerns for their safety to contact police.

“We would reiterate to the public that this matter is still being investigated and if they wish to report any breaches of restrictions to do this through 105.police.govt.nz”.

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