Quarantine breach results in $5k fine

A 27-year-old man has been spared having a conviction recorded for breaching his two-week quarantine when he moved to WA from Victoria. Meharban Sudhir appeared in Bunbury Magistrate’s Court last week where he was fined a total of $5500 but granted a spent conviction after pleading guilty to three counts of failing to comply with a direction. The court was told Sudhir arrived in WA on June 30 after driving from Victoria via South Australia and was given a direction by police to self-isolate for 14 days after he was granted entry. It was understood Victoria was a “low risk” jurisdiction at the time while South Australia was deemed a “very-low risk” jurisdiction. Sudhir nominated an address in Dunsborough and police allowed him to complete his quarantine there. However, when officers went to the address to check on Sudhir a week later, he and his car were missing. The court was told that instead of remaining at the Dunsborough address he previously nominated, Sudhir had driven himself to Bunbury and checked in to the Prince of Wales Hotel three days after he was given the direction to self-isolate for 14 days. The court was also told Sudhir attended Woolworths in the Bunbury Plaza Shopping Centre, as well as Dan Murphy’s and purchased several items on July 3 and dined at Nando’s Bunbury during the afternoon of July 6. In submissions, Sudhir’s lawyer Bill Evangel said his client moved from Victoria to Bunbury for a job opportunity in the hospitality industry. After he was invited to instead stay at the Prince of Wales Hotel by his employer, Sudhir failed to notify authorities when he travelled to Bunbury. The court was also told Sudhir had tested negative for COVID-19 while he was in South Australia and was wearing a mask while he attended Woolworths, Dan Murphy’s and Nando’s. It was also submitted he only attended the three stores to stock up on food and drinks to get him through the quarantine and had no contact with members of the public. It was further submitted Sudhir, who did not speak English as his first language, made full admissions to police and expressed remorse for his offending, admitting he was “ignorant” of where he could stay for his quarantine. A number of reference letters submitted to the court depicted Sudhir as a person of “exemplary character” who was highly regarded by his employers. In sentencing, Magistrate Tanya Watt said while the country remained under significant pressure to keep people safe from COVID-19, she found Sudhir’s offending was at the lower end of seriousness. Ms Watt also found Sudhir’s actions were not pre-planned and he did not deliberately deceive authorities.