Skinners Shoot woman Zofia De Vries, 34, refused to enter court after she was charged over Covid-19 breaches

The 34-year-old “sovereign citizen” refused to sign in, would not wear a mask and verbally abused the security guard. In court, a Byron Bay magistrate said it was time to send a clear message.

A woman has been convicted of public health order breaches following an incident at Byron Bay Post Office on Jonson Street.

A “sovereign citizen” anti-masker has been fined $4000 after she failed to comply with public health orders and verbally abused a security guard in Byron Bay.

Zofia De Vries, 34, from Skinners Shoot, was charged with not complying with a noticed Covid-19 direction and not wearing a fitted face covering in business premises after an incident at Byron Bay Post Office on Jonson St on the afternoon of Monday, August 16.

Byron Bay Local Court heard on Monday the accused was asked to check in with a QR code or manually sign in and to wear a mask – or prove her exemption – but she refused and instead verbally abused the security guard.

Australia Post had begun having security guards manning post offices in Mullumbimby and Byron Bay in response to non-compliance.

The court heard she did turn up, without a mask, to Byron Bay Court House before her charges were mentioned on Monday but she refused to enter the courtroom.

She gave court staff a handwritten note outlining her “sovereign” position.

“I’m informed by the sheriff and court officer Ms De Vries did attend court outside,” Magistrate Karen Stafford said.

“She refused to wear a mask. She did not produce an exemption to wear a mask.

“I’m further informed the sheriff did not exclude her, but the defendant refused to enter the courtroom.”

Ms Stafford said the accused was given a form, on which she could indicate a formal plea to the charges.

“She didn’t complete that (form),” Ms Stafford said.

“On the rear of the sheet she provided the court with essentially a sovereign claim disputing that this court has any jurisdiction.

“There is no plea of guilty or not guilty entered at all.

“As well as the standard sovereign claim which is often raised in this court – which the high courts have not accepted – she has submitted three times the case should be dismissed.

“She simply refused to accept this court has jurisdiction.”

Ms Stafford said a fact sheet prepared by police satisfied her De Vries committed the offences.

She said based on the information before her, De Vries “intentionally barged past the security officer” and began “yelling and screaming” at him.

“She was given opportunities to provide an exemption for wearing a mask and did not do that,” Ms Stafford said.

“The (police) say that when she was told she had to manually sign in she pushed her way into the store … and she yelled and screamed at the security guard citing sections of the Constitution.”

Ms Stafford said the conduct was particularly troubling in the context of the Northern Rivers’ Covid-19 scare at that time.

She referred to the “man and his two sons who both came up from Sydney”; all three tested positive for Covid-19 and two of them are facing criminal charges.

Ms Stafford said there was therefore a “real risk” of Covid-19 in the region at the time.

“(It was) not a fanciful risk of Covid-19 but a real risk, knowing that these people from Sydney had not QR-coded and the task of finding exposure sites has been quite a drawn out one by the authorities,” she said.

“Her behaviour inside the post office (and) her letter to the court, consistently shows that she feels that she should not have to abide by the public health orders.

“In light of that attitude … there is a significant need to deter her from reoffending.

“There is also … a significant need to recognise the harm that is done to the community in a very tangible way relating to the health and safety of us all.”

While De Vries had no prior criminal record, Ms Stafford found it was appropriate to record convictions. She also fined De Vries $2000 for each offence.