A person is to be charged in court for organising a mass event during the COVID-19 pandemic after an illegal party in Pembroke during the weekend that cases reached record numbers.

Police say the alleged rave organiser will also face charges of holding a commercial activity without a license. 

Video of the illegal rave was originally published to Facebook by FreeHour Malta on Sunday evening. 

Replying to questions, a spokesperson said the police received information about an illegal party in the area known as 'White Rocks' in the early hours of Saturday. 

"The Police went on site and found that a party, with a large number of attendees, was taking place in the basement of the mentioned complex," a spokesman said.

"The crowd dispersed as soon as they noticed police presence, however, the alleged organiser was identified onsite and will be charged accordingly for organizing a mass event during the Covid-19 Pandemic and also for holding a commercial activity without a license from the regulatory authority."

Video of the illegal rave was originally published to Facebook by FreeHour Malta on Sunday evening. 

The video showed people dancing to loud music, without wearing any masks or following any social distancing rules.  

FreeHour said that police stopped the party, but it was not yet known whether fines were handed out. 

Currently, gatherings of more than six people are banned and all bars and clubs are closed until the end of March.

On Monday, a police spokesperson said the videos are being investigated.

Last week was one of the worst weeks of new COVID-19 since the first case was detected nearly a year ago, with the number of new cases surpassing 200 on five days.

The organisers of Earth Garden, one of the island’s biggest festivals, announced on Monday that this year’s edition will be postponed to 2022.

“This is indeed unfortunate, as we all hoped for a better year, but large scale events such as Earth Garden are not a realist eventuality for 2021.”