‘She’ll pay’: NT chief minister furious at woman who sparked lockdown, says she didn’t disclose Melbourne visit

Michael Gunner has verbally lashed a woman at the centre of the Top End’s Covid cluster, saying she didn’t disclose she’d been to Melbourne.

A 21-year-old woman who sparked a lockdown in the Northern Territory has been verbally lashed by chief minister Michael Gunner, who alleges she lied on her border entry form, not disclosing she had come from Covid-hit Melbourne.

She tested positive on Friday night and has been confirmed as the source of a cluster of three.

Mr Gunner told reporters on Sunday the woman had five hours of interviews with detectives over 24 hours and it had been established she flew from Cairns to Adelaide then drove to Melbourne on October 21, spending four days in Victoria before flying to Darwin on October 29.

It comes as Greater Darwin’s lockout was extended another 24 hours until midnight tomorrow while the lockdown in Katherine was downgraded from lockdown to lockout at 3pm Sunday.

Mr Gunner no new Covid-19 cases had emerged, so from 3pm on Sunday, the lockdown would be scaled back to a lockout.

“If you’re fully vaccinated you can go about life as normal as long as you are masked,” Mr Gunner said.

“If all goes well, Katherine will exit the lockout with Darwin at midnight tomorrow.”

The Covid-positive woman flew to Darwin after being in Melbourne for four days, lying on her border entry form. Picture: James D. Morgan/Getty Images

Mr Gunner said the woman’s actions had “put the territory at risk”.

“We now know that before arriving in Darwin, she spent time in Melbourne, which is almost certainly where she contracted the virus,” he said.

“They forced Katherine into lockdown and forced Katherine businesses to shut,” he said.

“While there were compassionate reasons for her decision to visit Victoria, there were not compassionate reasons to lie, entering the territory from a hot spot.”

NT chief minister Michael Gunner said South Australian and Queensland authorities were investigating. Picture: Julianne Osborne

He said she had been handed a $5000 fine and would pay for her time quarantining at Howard Springs.

“I’ve said it before. And I’ll say it again. Don’t lie. Don’t be selfish. Think of others,” he said.

“She’ll pay because she lied to officials.”