Eve Black: Infamous Covid-19 breacher pleads guilty to licence charge

A conspiracy theorist who filmed herself getting arrested after she failed to hand over her licence has been dealt with in court.

A notorious Covid-19 conspiracist has been fined but spared conviction after she refused to hand over her licence to police during Victoria’s lockdown last year.

Eve Black, whose real name is Eugenia Limberiou, pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to produce a licence in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday.

She was pulled over on July 29 last year – after filming a viral video of her breaching restrictions – when police spotted her leaving an underground carpark in a white LandCruiser on Rathdowne St at Carlton.

The 29-year-old woman “was insistent on recording the interaction on her mobile phone”, police said in the summary read out in court.

Coronavirus sceptic Eve Black, whose real name is Eugenia Limberiou, pleaded guilty to failing to hand over her licence.

“She was argumentative and uncooperative and wound up the window and locked the door, refusing to acknowledge or respond to police requests,” the court was told.

Police said she failed to produce her licence or provide her name and address with the officers, warning Ms Black if she refused to comply they would force entry into the car.

An officer used a window-break device to shatter the driver’s-side window and removed her from the car and arrested her.

But she also told the court she didn’t give false information to police.

Coronavirus conspiracy theorist Eve Black drives through a checkpoint crossing in Melbourne last year. Picture: Facebook

“I did not give false information, I simply did not give any information until after I was arrested,” Black said.

She was fined $1652 for failing to have a valid reason to travel during stage 3 restrictions in place at the time.

Judicial registrar Barry Johnstone asked Black whether she accepted what the prosecutor read out in court.

“Yes I do accept that happened,” she replied.

She told the court she was unemployed and the last time she worked was “years ago”, as her former partner supported her.

Black appeared via phone link in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday. Picture: LinkedIn

Black was fined $200 without conviction because it was her first offence and was told she could pay in instalments or ask for it to be converted to community work.

The woman, who now lives in Queensland, caused outrage after posting a video of herself driving through a checkpoint in July 2020 after spouting responses from a printed sheet.

“Have I committed a crime?” she repeatedly asked the officer in response to being asked why she was travelling, until he told her: “You can keep going.”

She then burst out laughing and her actions were branded “incredibly selfish” by Victoria Police Minister Lisa Neville.