53 people to front court today for breaching COVID-19 restrictions

53 people will front the court today as Police officers continue to make arrests for COVID-19 restriction breaches.

There is some good news as there were no curfew arrests in the Central Division. The bad news is that some people continue to refuse to follow instructions like some people in Lokia who did not want to listen to Police and continued playing rugby while some tried to breach the Nausori border to enter Suva.

Police Commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho says social gathering breaches accounted for 33 arrests, curfew breaches 18 arrests and 2 men aged 18 and 28 years were arrested for breaching the lockdown restrictions after they allegedly tried to get into Suva through the Nausori border.

Qiliho says from the 33 social gathering breaches, a group of 8 youths were arrested after allegedly refusing to disperse after being warned not to play rugby in Lokia yesterday.

The remaining 25 arrests made in the East and Southern divisions where people were found drinking yaqona.

Of the 18 curfew arrests, the west recorded 4, South recorded 11, North recorded 2, East recorded 1 while no arrests were recorded in the Central Division.

Qiliho says it is clear that people are still taking things lightly as seen with the number of arrests even as the nation experienced the impacts of Severe Tropical Cyclone Harold creating more work for officers on the ground.

The Commissioner says TC Harold has passed and we have COVID-19 still here to deal with and we cannot afford to be complacent with a virus that is claiming thousands of lives every 24 hours globally.

Qiliho has told people to stop gambling with their lives and the lives of their loved ones, because when you selfishly leave your home to meet up with others over a tanoa of yaqona or a drinking party, you could be the one responsible for spreading the virus, which is why health officials have and continue to reiterate that everyone should Stay home to Save lives and refrain from gathering in numbers.