Cops break up 700-person Airbnb mansion party, charge 3 for violating N.J.’s gathering limits

Three people have been charged with violating the governor’s executive order limiting gatherings after police spent hours breaking up a mansion party in Jackson Township that grew to over 700 people Sunday night and clogged neighborhood streets with traffic, authorities said.

Police said they started receiving complaints about a disturbance on Mill Pond Road around 8:30 p.m. from nearby residents.

After arriving and seeing the large crowd, offices contacted the homeowner, 40-year-old Jackson resident Yaakov Weiss, who told them he had rented the property on Airbnb and he had left when about 200 people were there, authorities said.

The home, which sits on a cul-de-sac in the suburban neighborhood, costs $795 a night to rent and is described as a “stunning 3,700+ square foot home,” according to the Airbnb listing. The host’s rules include “no parties or events.”

Police said the gathering eventually grew to more than 700 people with over 100 vehicles parked in the area. As authorities tried to clear the crowd, more people continued arriving.

Weiss and the party organizers, Patience Guanue, 23, and Alicia Hinneh, 22, both of Newark, were all issued summonses for violating the governor’s executive order, police said. Under current coronavirus restrictions in New Jersey, outdoor gatherings are limited to 500 people and indoor gatherings to 100 people or 25% of a room’s capacity, whichever is less.

Authorities also received a 911 call from a nearby resident reporting that people who had left the party had broken into their residence and were damaging property, police said.

“It was determined that a family member of the caller who had been at the original party had invited a large group from the party back to the residence. Additional officers responded and the unwanted group was then dispersed from this second residence,” Jackson police said.

This was the second large party authorities in Ocean County broke up recently. In Brick last Monday, three people were charged after multiple departments broke up a rowdy party that grew to more than 400 people in the Baywood section of Brick Township.

At the governor’s daily press briefing on Monday, New Jersey State Police Colonel Pat Callahan said the continued ban on indoor dining and bars could be driving people to hold house parties instead.

“I do think the fact that bars and restaurants are closed then create this underground situation which is certainly not one we want because... young people, even if asymptomatic and you’re positive, the fact that you can transmit that to your family members is certainly one that concerns us,” Callahan said.

In a statement, Airbnb Spokesman Ben Breit said the company removed both of the party organizers from the platform, deactivated the listing and is investigating further.

To help stem large gatherings in light of COVID-19, Airbnb announced in April that it temporarily removed the “parties and events allowed” rule from New Jersey listings that formerly authorized parties and temporarily disabled the “event-friendly” search filter used so guests can find places for gatherings.

“We strongly condemn the reported behavior, which represents both a clear violation of Airbnb’s community policies and a particularly serious abuse during this public health crisis,” Breit said.

All on-duty Jackson officers worked to clear the crowd and direct traffic until 1 a.m., with help from surrounding law enforcement agencies, police said.

The Freehold Police Department, Howell Police Department, Lakewood Police Department, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Ocean County Sheriff’s Department and New Jersey State Police helped clear the area.

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Avalon Zoppo may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @AvalonZoppo.