Victoria Covid: Where police busted 32,000 Covidiots

Thousands of Covidiots were fined for defying Victorian restrictions in the past year. See how your suburb ranked here.

Victoria Police handed out more than 32,000 public health and safety orders in the past 12 months. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

Two thirds of Victoria’s Covidiots were busted while committing other alleged crimes as police crack down on the most blatant breaches of public health rules.

Victoria Police handed out more than 32,000 public health and safety orders in the past 12 months, with most Covid-rule breakers concentrated in one local government area.

Police hand out face masks to people on St Kilda beach on Tuesday evening to enforce mask wearing and social distancing during stage 4 Covid restrictions in Victoria. Picture: David Geraghty

According to the latest Crime Statistics Agency data, there were 32,549 recorded incidents of public health and safety offences in the last financial year.

Fifteen per cent of the entire state’s Covid breaches were recorded in the City of Melbourne, home to several chaotic anti-lockdown and Covid-sceptic protests.

More than 4600 public health offences were handed out in the City of Melbourne in 2021, the equivalent of three fines for every 100 residents.

There also were also more than a thousand breaches in the local government areas of Hume, Dandenong, Brimbank, Casey, Wyndham, Frankston and Port Philip.

The councils with the most Covid safety breaches per population included Melbourne, Dandenong, Yarra, Moorabool and Port Phillip.

Regional Victorians were also busted breaking the rules, with Moorabool residents among the most fined for Covid breaches.

The Western Victorian shire, which was plunged into a seven day lockdown on Friday, had the most fines per person of any regional area – with a total of 347 public health breaches.

There were 9120 public health breaches in regional Victoria, with Geelong, Moorabool, Macedon Ranges, Ballarat, Latrobe, Baw Baw and Bendigo the worst offenders.

Among the breaches were people partying and holidaying through the pandemic lockdowns, including a group of 10 Warrnambool teenagers who were fined more than $20,000 for a Saturday night gathering in August..

An Echuca pub owner, who claimed it was his “constitutional right” to pour a beer for his patrons was fined $20,000 and charged for openly flouting the July lockdown.

This was one of 137 Covid Safe breaches in the regional council area of Campaspe, on the New South Wales border.

Vehicles and checkpoint police officers are pictured at the Covid checkpoint in Mildura on the NSW-Victorian border. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Darren Seiler

The small shire of Swan Hill, with a population of 20,000, punched above its weight with 168 safety breaches in 12 months – or around one Covidiot per 100 people.

Victoria Police said these breaches were only recorded in “deliberate and blatant” cases of the chief health officer’s directions.

“Almost two thirds of all people issued with Covid fines were also charged with other criminal offences in the process,” a Victoria Police spokesman said.

“This included instances where police intercepted people outside of their permitted travel zone in stolen cars, caught drug traffickers post curfew, or searched vehicles at checkpoints only to find weapons.

“Victoria Police is responsible for enforcing to protect the health and safety of all Victorians

“Police only issued fines for deliberate and blatant breaches of the chief health officer’s directions.”