Qld Covid cases: Sydney superyacht crew, Melbourne couple enemies of state

New details have emerged on the superyacht millionaire who with three others snuck into Queensland from Covid-ravaged Sydney as the couple who escaped Melbourne’s lockdown and travelled to the Sunshine Coast is unmasked.

Four travellers arriving in Queensland from Covid-ravaged Sydney on a luxury ­superyacht have been slammed by state leaders and police, as the Covid-positive couple who fled Melbourne amid a virus outbreak have been unmasked.

It comes as Queensland records no new local cases of Covid in the past 24 hours. There were five cases acquired overseas and detected in hotel quarantine.

Melbourne-based audio ­visual technology millionaire ­Jeromy Young was one of four travellers who entered Queensland from Sydney’s worsening Covid crisis on a luxury super­yacht after ­making false border declarations before attending last week’s Australia vs France rugby Test at Brisbane’s ­Suncorp Stadium, where they sat among a crowd of almost 20,000 people.

The group have been fined $4135 each and given a mandatory two-week stint in hotel quarantine at their own expense.

Mr Young is a director and former chief executive of ASX-listed Atomos, worth almost $100 million.

Jeromy Young

Mr Young did not respond to requests for comment, but in a statement, a spokesman for Atomos said it was “a personal matter”.

“Atomos fully supports appropriate measures to maintain Covid-19 safety,” he said.

His companions on his 34m superyacht Dreamtime – a vessel also available for charter for almost $20,000 a day, included the boat’s 54-year-old Gold Coast-based skipper, a 59-year-old Melbourne man listed as Mr Young’s personal assistant and a 55-year-old engineer from Brisbane.

Initial Covid tests have come back negative, but the group has been slammed for needlessly putting the health of Queenslanders at risk.

Gold Coast police Superintendent Rhys Wildman said Dreamtime’s illegal voyage to Queensland was “extremely disappointing”.

“This is just another case that we have to highlight … it only takes one person to put everyone at risk. It’s really, really important that everyone plays their part in keeping us all safe,” Superintendent Wildman said.

Jeromy Young

Water police and Maritime Safety Queensland have stepped up patrols in the wake of the breach, and officers will be blitzing waterways and roads ahead of Origin III, with travellers on two other vessels also busted for border breaches in the past fortnight.

“Anyone we intercept, whether it’s on the road or on the water, we’ll make appropriate inquiries in relation to the person’s validity around their border pass,” he said.

He said police were intercepting an average of 800 suspect vehicles a day near the border.

Meanwhile, the Melbourne couple who broke lockdown and lied their way into Queensland in June while infectious with Covid-19 have been identified as Claudia Stan, 44, and her husband Oscar Gonzalez, 48.

The duo placed Queensland on high alert of a potential outbreak after fleeing Melbourne’s lockdown and driving to the Sunshine Coast, where they tested positive to Covid-19.

Superyacht Dreamtime now moored on the Gold Coast

The pair returned positive results at Caloundra on June 9 and 10, respectively, after they travelled to cafes and shopping centres throughout the region while infectious.

Ms Stan and Mr Gonzalez have so far refused to publicly explain their actions.

Queensland Police fined the couple $4003 each for failing to comply with Covid-19 border directions, before New South Wales slapped the pair with a $1000 fine for failing to comply with public health orders.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said those who ignored the rules were not welcome in Queensland.

“We do not want people coming here breaking the law, pure and simple,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

Deputy Police Commissioner Steve Gollschewki said there were consequences for people who flouted the law.

“The reason there’s consequences for it is because we’re trying to keep the virus out of Queensland, so they should stop that,” he said.

The Covid-19-positive Melbourne couple have been identified.