The police dog unit tracked down people who fled an illegal gathering in a Jesmond garage on Saturday evening.
Police issued eight public health order fines, including five to teenage children, after turning up at the gathering in Blue Gum Road at 6.30pm.
"On sighting police, the garage door was shut, and the occupants fled," police said in a statement.
"With the assistance of the Police Dog Unit, three people were detained nearby.
"Police spoke to the remaining occupants, and eight people, including five juveniles and three adults aged between 13 and 36, were issued infringements."
Children under the age of 12 are exempt from infringement notices, but older children are not.
Deputy Police Commissioner Michael Willing said at Sunday's NSW COVID-19 media update that police had issued fines to people who "thought they could gather at a residence in Jesmond".
The Jesmond gathering comes after two parties at Shortland and Blacksmiths on July 28 and July 30 were identified as seeding events for the virus in the Hunter.
Two Sydney women have been charged after allegedly attending the July parties having ignored fines issued in Newcastle and orders to return home. Both later tested positive for coronavirus.
Gatherings are banned under NSW's COVID-19 public health orders, and the government has increased fines and launched a stricter police crackdown on breaches in the face of rising case numbers.
NSW reported 415 new cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Saturday, the same day the government ordered the entire state into lockdown until midnight on August 21.
Another four people have died of COVID-19 in Sydney, including an unvaccinated woman in her 50s, a woman in her 70s who had only recently had her first dose, an unvaccinated man in his 80s, and a vaccinated woman who had chronic health issues.
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