A RENMARK woman is the latest in a line of offenders to be arrested for failing to comply with the state’s COVID-19 directions.
The 27-year-old flew into South Australia from New South Wales last week, where she was then required to undergo mandatory testing and a 14-day quarantine as part of SA’s cross-border travel directions.
However, when South Australia police conducted compliance checks between Thursday and Saturday, it found she had not complied with her COVID test requirement, nor had she been quarantining.
She had initially been issued with expiation notices, but by Saturday she was arrested and appeared in Berri Magistrates Court on Monday, where she was sentenced to seven days in custody.
Murray Mallee Superintendent James Blandford said South Australia had done “so well” to keep a lid on COVID-19 and to see people blatantly disregarding the rules was “quite staggering”.
“It’s remarkably selfish and incredibly ignorant of people to think they don’t have to follow the rules when literally, the nation’s public health is at risk,” he said.
“South Australia has done so well to actually keep some sort of lid on the COVID-19 and keep our community safe, (and) to have these people put that at risk for no reason whatsoever is quite staggering and quite disappointing.
“I’m pretty sure no one’s lifestyle is that urgent or that important that it overrides the general public health and safety, and the community.”
Mr Blandford said people need to be aware they will be held into account, and those found disregarding the law and their obligations will be caught.
“Quite frankly, there are a lot of resources that are being diverted to doing other things to maintain and manage these incredibly selfish people so the community is actually safe,” he said.
“You will get caught, you will get fined, and if you continue to disregard the law and the obligation, you’ll be imprisoned.
“We just have to knuckle down and make some sacrifices, and pay particular attention to our own personal hygiene and our own lifestyle in the short-term so we get the long-term advantage of keeping this COVID-19 virus at bay.
“If we don’t control it, and we keep getting these stupid and selfish people breaking quarantine then it’s going to shut our country down, and the economic ramifications of that are staggering.”