Covid 19 coronavirus: Woman charged over spitting at Auckland Transport staff on train

An Auckland woman has been charged with assault for allegedly spitting at staff on a train.

Police say they arrested a 32-year-old female was arrested yesterday.

She is due to appear in Auckland District Court today charged with assault under the Crimes Act.

Police would like to thank members of the public who came forward with information which helped lead to the arrest of the alleged offender.

Auckland Transport manager Steve Morgan told the Herald last week there had been cases where people had been spoken to by staff and that had increased as the lockdown wore on.

For example, there had been people trying to travel from Takanini or Henderson to do their shopping in the city "well outside their local area".

"Unfortunately, we are getting groups of kids who really shouldn't be breaking their bubble and we are having to send them home.

"We've been getting a huge amount of support from the police."

They had also been present on the train services last week, he said.

Morgan said their main message to the public was to remember to be kind.

Stay home, stay safe and leave the public transport for essential workers and those needing essential services, he said.

There are still 16,000 people using various forms of public transport across Auckland daily for legitimate reasons.