5 Jul 2020

Covid-19: Police charge woman who left Auckland quarantine hotel

7:15 pm on 5 July 2020

A woman who climbed a fence to escape a Covid-19 isolation facility last night has been charged.

Auckland's Pullman Hotel.

The woman was in isolation at the Pullman Hotel. Photo: Google Maps

Police said the 43-year-old will appear in the Auckland District Court once she has completed her managed isolation obligations.

She faces a charge of a breach of the Covid-19 Public Health Response Act.

The woman arrived from Brisbane on 27 June and returned a negative Covid-19 test three days later.

Minister Megan Woods earlier said people in isolation facilities need to take some personal responsibility.

"This is a clearly marked area where it's a given that you shouldn't be leaving it, we're not putting up the unclimbable walls at these hotels, we're asking those rejoining the team of five million to follow the rules."

Under the Covid-19 Public Health Response Act the maximum penalty is six months in prison or a $4000 fine, she said.

Five police officers attended the incident and went into isolation as a precaution, following an assessment four of the officers were deemed to have had no contact with the woman or took necessary measures and they have since returned for duty, a police statement said. One officer remains in isolation pending the result of a Covid-19 test.

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