5 Apr 2021

More than 400 people convicted for breaching Covid-19 restrictions

1:18 pm on 5 April 2021

One in five people convicted of breaching Covid-19 restrictions last year were sentenced to time in prison.

The crown prosecutors leave court after the Tarrant case

Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon

Annual statistics from the Ministry of Justice show of the 640 people charged with offences, 460 were ultimately convicted.

Of those convicted, almost 20 percent - 85 people - were sentenced to imprisonment.

Forty-three percent got a community sentence, such as home detention, community detention, intensive supervision or community work.

A quarter of those charged were found not guilty, or the charges were dismissed or withdrawn.

Almost 80 percent of those convicted were men, and close to half were aged under 30.

Forty-eight percent were Māori and 46 percent were European.

*The original headline on this story said that more than 80 people were convicted.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs