Man charged with breaching COVID-19 restrictions eight times, as several others face court for allegedly flouting quarantine

A Wingfield man is charged with flouting coronavirus restrictions at least eight times, including sneaking into SA despite being refused entry at the Victorian border. Meanwhile, five other “covidiots” have faced court.

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Police have arrested a man for flouting coronavirus restrictions eight times – including crossing the border after being twice refused entry.

The arrest on Monday came on the same day that a record six people appeared before the courts accused of illegally crossing the border or breaching quarantine.

In one case, a “dog lover” who was refused entry at the Pinnaroo border checkpoint, only to drive five hours north and sneak across the Broken Hill crossing, was given a 13-day suspended jail sentence.

The most breaches were those of a 31-year-old Wingfield man, who is accused of flouting the Emergency Management Act eight times. He allegedly tried to cross the Pinnaroo border checkpoint twice within half an hour on Sunday, only to be refused both times.

Police claimed he drove away from the checkpoint but instead of leaving the state, he filled his car with petrol at a nearby service station before sneaking around the checkpoint and driving to Adelaide.

He was arrested on Monday and refused bail. He is set to appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

In other cases, police said a 27-year-old Renmark woman would spend the next seven days in custody after repeatedly failing to undergo a COVID-19 test and for breaching quarantine.

The woman was required to undergo a test last Thursday but failed to do so.

Police issued her with an expiation notice. The next day officers found she had still not undergone a test and was breaching her quarantine, fining her again.

On Saturday the woman was arrested for again breaching quarantine and refusing a test. She appeared in the Berri Magistrates Court on Monday morning, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven days in prison.

The Adelaide Magistrates Court heard that NSW man Mohammad Hussaini, 25, and his passenger, Jade Seymour, 20, tried to cross the border at Pinnaroo on Thursday.

The pair was trying to drive to Adelaide to pick up a dog that belonged to Hussaini’s cousin. After being turned away, the court heard that the pair drove five hours north and entered through Broken Hill.

They were both arrested in Adelaide on Saturday.

A police prosecutor on Monday asked Magistrate Jack Fahey to jail Hussaini because of the seriousness of the offence.

“We don’t know whether he has any illness or not,” he said.

“But the risk was there for us all.”

Mr Fahey convicted Hussaini and jailed him for 13 days, in addition to the three days he had already spent in custody.

However, he suspended the sentence once Hussaini entered a six-month good behaviour bond. Seymour was released without conviction on a good-behaviour bond.

Mr Fahey also ordered that truck driver Robert Edward White, 46, who is accused of smuggling a Mount Gambier woman across the border, be remanded in custody to face court later this week.

Greg Arthur Vigar, 54, of Pennington, was released on bail after the court heard he had asked police to arrest him because his quarantine address was no longer suitable. He will contest a charge of breaching COVID restrictions.

In Mount Gambier, Luke John Parsons, 39, who was has a history of breaching COVID restriction, was refused bail after being found walking through pine plantations near the border.