20 Aug 2020

Two arrests after alleged breaches of Auckland's alert level 3 restrictions

6:42 pm on 20 August 2020

Police have arrested and charged two men with breaching Auckland's level 3 restrictions and another five people have been warned for breaches.

Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller

As of yesterday afternoon, police indicated 105,963 vehicles had been processed through the 13 checkpoints operating in the Auckland region, with a total of 5622 being turned around.

A 32-year-old man and a 58-year-old man face charges which include obstructing or hindering a Medical Officer of Health or a person assisting them.

The 32-year-old is alleged to have ignored an order to turn around on 16 August and to have proceeded to visit his partner in Waikato.

The 58-year-old man allegedly tried to evade police by driving down a truck bypass lane at the Bombay checkpoint on State Highway 1 on 17 August.

Both men are expected to appear in the Manukau District Court.

In a statement, Assistant Commissioner Scott Fraser said police were urging people to play it safe and stay local this weekend.

He said since Auckland went back into alert level 3 restrictions, police have been conducting hundreds of reassurance patrols across essential services including at supermarkets, pharmacies and Covid-19 testing sites.