No respect for the law: Cops reveal one Melbourne man, 27, has been hit with $1652 coronavirus fine TWENTY-FOUR times
- A 24-year-old, from Hallam, was hit with his 24th coronavirus fine on Thursday
- He was arrested after officers found him in the Doveton area, about 5km away
- More than 2200 people have breached COVID-19 rules on more than once
- Other repeat offenders include a person with 19 penalty notices, and two with 15
A Melbourne man who has repeatedly defied the law has racked up 24 coronavirus fines worth $1652 each.
Since metropolitan Melbourne entered stage four restrictions on August 2, residents must stay at home between 8pm and 5am, unless they need to leave for work, medical care or caregiving.
The 24-year-old man, from Hallam in the city's south east, was slapped with his latest infringement on Thursday night after officers found him in the Doveton area, about 5km away.
He was arrested and charged with contravening CHO directions under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act and has been remanded in custody to appear in court at a later date.
A 24-year-old Hallam man was slapped with his 24th coronavirus penalty notice on Thursday evening. A police is seen talking to a man following a protest in Dandenong earlier this week
It comes as Victoria Police revealed more than 2200 people have been caught breaching restrictions on multiple occasions.
A total of 1531 residents have received two penalty notices, while a further 412 people have been copped three.
Other repeat offenders include a person who has been struck with 19 fines, two with 15, two with 12 and three each with 10 and 11.
Some recidivists offered police bizarre excuses upon being caught.
A man, who has racked up 16 infringements, admitted to police on one occasion he was going to a friend’s place to purchase drugs.
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He was also caught on three separate instances without a face covering. On each occasion he was offered a mask but refused.
Another man who received six infringement notices - including three within a two weeks for breaching curfew - told police during one encounter that he was dropping his girlfriend off at home and asked them to not inform his wife.
A Lalor man, with seven fines to his name, received one fine for catching the train from his suburb to Bairndale.
He was hit with a second fine the next day when he was caught attempting to make the journey again.
Victoria police have revealed more than 2200 people have breached coronavirus rules on multiple occassions
A third man was served two of his eight penalty notices for failing to wear a face covering, before spitting at members and telling them coronavirus is a hoax.
Victorians are handed a $200 fine for failing to cover their face when outside and can be hit with a $1,652 infringement for breaching stay at home order.
A Victoria police spokesperson said the power to arrest is generally applied if a person refuses to comply with a police direction to provide proof of identity or are found to be in breach of the directives multiple times in quick succession.
Police are assessing each breach on a case-by-case basis to determine whether recidivist offenders should be dealt $1,652 on the spot fines or arrested to appear before court.
'The majority of people who have received an infringement notice have only been fined once,' a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
Police presence is seen in Dandenong following a protest of people complaining on the current stage four lockdown in Thursday
'However, there are a number of people who have made the decision to deliberately breach the Chief Health Officer’s directives on repeated occasions.'
'Thankfully, the selfish behaviour of these individuals is the exception as the overwhelming majority of Victorians have done the right thing and abided by the CHOs directives to help slow the spread of coronavirus.
'For the health and safety of every Victorian, we need people to follow these directives and will not hesitate to hold those who deliberately and blatantly show a disregard for community safety to account.'
Victoria recorded 114 new coronavirus cases and 11 deaths on Sunday.
The latest figures bring the state's active cases to 2830, which includes 406 healthcare workers and 1277 in aged care.
There are 472 Victorians in hospital with coronavirus, including 25 in intensive care.
