Covid-19 coronavirus Delta outbreak: Six people arrested at lockdown protest in Tauranga

Bay of Plenty Police arrested six people in Tauranga today protesting the Covid-19 lockdown, with one due to appear in court tomorrow.It comes as police responded to anti-lockdown events across the country this morning where small groups gathered outside government and council buildings.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said 19 people were arrested nationwide for failing to comply with alert level 4 restrictions.

Six of those arrested had gathered outside the Tauranga City Council building.

Five of those arrested — women aged 44 and 68, and men aged 70, 46 and 74 — were given a formal warning.

The sixth person — a 51-year-old woman — was charged with Failing to Comply with Order (Covid-19) and is due in Tauranga District Court tomorrow.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster. Photo / Mark Mitchell

A Tauranga City Council spokesperson said the council was aware of the incident but only through contact with the police.

"The building was empty at the time," they said. "We have no details about the nature of the protest, but understand some arrests were made."

Meanwhile, a 38-year-old woman was arrested on a charge of Obstructing/Hindering a Medical Officer during a protest in Taupō today.

Police confirmed the woman is due to appear in Taupō District Court tomorrow.Arrests were also made in Whanganui, Christchurch, Auckland, and Hamilton.

"While these protests were small, the actions of those involved are very disappointing," Coster said.

"While protest is a normal feature of a well-functioning democracy, police have a low tolerance for anyone who deliberately ignores the restrictions in the current situation. Today's arrests reflect that.

"The alert level is in place to protect us all and we need everyone to do their part."

On August 18, four people were arrested at a lockdown protest in Tauranga. Three were given formal warnings and one, a 56-year-old woman, was charged under the Health Act.

Since alert level 4 came into effect on August 17, 118 people have been charged with a total of 126 offences nationwide.

Of the charges filed, 84 are for Failing to Comply with Order (Covid-19), 28 for Failure to Comply with Direction/Prohibition/Restriction, 11 for Health Act Breaches and 3 for Assaults/Threatens/Hinders/Obstructs Enforcement Officer.

In the same time period, 341 formal warnings were issued to 338 people - 126 for Failing to Comply with Order (Covid-19), 119 for Failure to Comply with Direction/Prohibition/Restriction, 95 for Health Act Breaches and 1 for Assaults/Threatens/Hinders/Obstructs Enforcement Officer.

Police have received 13,531 online breach notifications of which 8367 were about a gathering, 3865 were about a business, and 1299 were about an individual.

In addition to the Online Breach Reports, a total of 8399 Covid-19 related calls were made to the 105-phone line. The majority (6005) of calls were requests for information, and 2394 were to report perceived Covid-19 breaches.

Police began issuing infringements for Covid-19 related
breaches from August 19.

As at 5pm on August 30, Police had issued 2483 infringement notices nationwide. The
breakdown of these offences is as follows:

• Person failed to remain at current home/residence – 2291
• Person failed to wear a face-covering on-premises – 49
• Person failed to comply with applicable physical distancing rule – 68
• Obstruct/Hinder Medical Officer of Health or Person Assisting Med
• Officer/Failing to Comply with Order (Covid-19) – 37
• Person failed to wear a face-covering on public transport – 6
• Person in control of premises failed to close as required – 7
• Person in control of workplace failed to display QR code – 15
• Person organised a gathering in an outdoor place – 10