Hillsborough, North Carolina – A Burlington man was charged Thursday afternoon with violating North Carolina pandemic restrictions after Orange County lawmakers responded to the report of a major New Year’s Eve party in Hillsborough.
A tent was set up outside the Palmers Grove Community Center at 1021 Palmers Grove Church Road, and deputies said there were about 100 people.
Jacob Alfred Kurtis Bethea, who organized the party, christened the New Year in the Valley and advertised it on social media as “the largest New Year’s Eve party in the state,” authorities said.
Party attendees bought tickets online before receiving the meeting address. Deputies found about ten people armed with semi-automatic pistols that provided security to the party, and even one was carrying an AR-15 rifle, authorities reported.
Bethea, 30, was charged with violating executive orders over mass meeting limits and operating an entertainment facility that was allegedly closed. Deputies also granted him a pending order from Guilford County accusing him of violating the limits of mass meetings with an event in September.
He posted on Facebook Friday night: “Man, I made the news last night, yeah, I was locked up to hold a party for my people, but I don’t care if they’re new ****** years of having fun “.
