All borders to reopen.

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Originally Posted by The ABC

Woman who breached WA coronavirus border by hiding on truck handed six-month jail sentence

A 28-year-old Perth woman who snuck across WA's hard border hidden on the back of a truck has received what is believed to be the toughest penalty handed down for breaching the state's quarantine laws.

Key points:
Asher Vander Sanden did have an exemption to fly into WA
But she instead entered WA by road and then went to her partner's house
She has been sentenced to six months in jail after pleading guilty
Asher Faye Vander Sanden, who had spent a month in coronavirus-hit Victoria, concealed herself from authorities at the border with South Australia by hiding in a car that was being transported by the truck.

She had been in Mildura, in regional Victoria, when she asked the driver to give her a lift to Perth.

The Perth Magistrates court was told Vander Sanden did have an exemption allowing her to fly to Perth, but was told that after she arrived she would have to quarantine in a hotel for 14 days at her own expense.

Police prosecutor Ian McDowall said after crossing the border, Vander Sanden was taken to a service station in Midland where she rang her partner and asked him to collect her.

Police tried to locate her, but Senior Constable McDowall said she failed to disclose her whereabouts. She was arrested at a unit in Scarborough about 10 days after her arrival in the state, and has spent the past fortnight in quarantine while in custody.

Vander Sanden 'self-quarantined': lawyer
Vander Sanden's lawyer, John Hammond, said his client had indicated from when she was first charged that she would plead guilty to the offence of failing to comply with a direction.

Vander Sanden was eventually found by police in her partner's unit in Scarborough. He said she had "self-quarantined" while she was in the Scarborough unit with her partner and had no contact with any "third party".

Mr Hammond said Vander Sanden had gone to Victoria to look after her sister who was unwell, but decided to return to Perth when she could not cope. He acknowledged Vander Sanden did have a criminal record, saying that was related to "a meth habit" but that she no longer used the drug.

Police condemn 'deceitful and dishonest' acts
Senior Constable McDowall argued an immediate jail term should be imposed, describing Vander Sanden as being "deceitful and dishonest" for no other reason than "selfishness". He said she had shown "a complete disregard" for the community and could have caused an outbreak of coronavirus and potentially further lockdowns in WA.

Magistrate Andrew Matthews described Vander Sanden's actions as "a very serious offence", saying they undermined what Western Australia had done to prevent community spread of "this hideous virus".

WA closed its borders in April for the first time in history in a bid to keep coronavirus out. e also said it was serious because she had travelled from Victoria, which he described as a "hotspot" for COVID-19.

Magistrate Matthews imposed a sentence of six months, backdated to August 12 when Vander Sanden was arrested.
The sentence is believed to be the harshest imposed among WA's series of COVID-19 quarantine breaches, which carry a maximum jail term of 12 months.

Outside the court, Vander Sanden's lawyer, John Hammond made only a brief comment.

"The magistrate sent a very clear message to people coming into Western Australia without quarantining, I can't say anything more than that."
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Meanwhile, in Queen$land, where money talk$ and bull$hit walk$....

Originally Posted by The ABC

Superyacht skipper fined for lying to get coronavirus border exemption for family of Mark Simonds
The skipper of a superyacht that sailed into Queensland from Victoria has defended his wealthy employer, saying they had nothing to do with the trail of lies used to get an exemption to cross the border.

Key points:
Greg Numa was fined $4,500 for breaching the Public Health Act with no conviction recorded
He set sail with businessman Mark Simonds and his family during the peak of the pandemic in Melbourne
The 64-year-old says the family had nothing to do with his decision to mislead officials
Greg Numa, 64, has pleaded guilty in the Southport Magistrates Court to providing false and misleading statements to an emergency officer under the Public Health Act and been fined $4,500.

The Lady Pamela, which is owned by Victorian millionaire Mark Simonds, left Melbourne on August 9 for a 15-day voyage with seven people on board, including Numa, Mr Simonds and his wife, their son Vallance and his girlfriend, Hannah Fox.

Police prosecutor Senior Sergeant Damian Summerfield said 83 emails had been exchanged between Numa and a Maritime Safety Queensland officer as part of an application for exemption from the Chief Health Officer.

A day after the group docked at Gold Coast City Marina the exemption was revoked and all seven were ordered into hotel quarantine, which ended on Tuesday. The court heard the Lady Pamela stopped at three locations along the New South Wales coast, a coronavirus hotspot, where Numa, Mr Simonds, his wife and others were seen leaving the yacht.

Senior Sergeant Summerfield said Numa, in multiple emails, claimed no-one had disembarked, and in one email exchange said: "We have had no contact with the outside world." "The integrity of the Fox family and the Simonds family remains. They had absolutely nothing to do with my decision," Numa said outside court.

"That was my decision and basically that winds it up."

"I want to thank Queensland Health, the Queensland Government, MSQ, the Queensland Police — they do an amazing job with dealing with people like myself who stepped over the line on this occasion. "I regret that and I've paid the price today."

Magistrate Grace Kahlert said it was a serious offence because of the risk to the community of coronavirus and that the sentence must denounce the conduct and deter others from doing the same.
A conviction was not recorded.
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