Australia Today

NSW Police Officers Fined for Breaching Social Distancing Rules at Party

While authorities place everyday Australians on effective house arrest, both state and federal police are failing to practice what they preach.
Gavin Butler
Melbourne, AU
nsw police
Image for illustrative purposes only. Two New South Wales policemen walk past a billboard as they patrol outside Customs House in Sydney's Circular Quay, 17 May 2005. AFP PHOTO/Greg WOOD
GREG WOOD / AFP

On the night of Saturday, April 4, as the rest of Australia shut themselves away in state-enforced quarantine, at least two senior constables with the New South Wales Police were caught breaching their own social distancing rules at a private party in Sydney.

One off-duty officer, a 27-year-old woman, was discovered by police on King St at about 8:30PM. She showed clear signs of intoxication, and was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital—but not before revealing that she’d come from a “social gathering” at a nearby apartment, according to 7News. Police subsequently visited the apartment, where they found a 27-year-old male off-duty officer in the company of another two women.

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The two officers, both serving senior constables, were each issued $1,000 fines for breaching NSW’s social distancing laws. State regulations stipulate that anyone caught outside their home without a reasonable excuse faces a penalty of up to $11,000, or six months’ imprisonment. How strictly these penalties are enforced, however, is largely left to the discretion of police officers.

The charges come just days after it was revealed that Australian Federal Police (AFP) recruits were under investigation for throwing a party at their residential college in Canberra on Friday.

"ACT Police can confirm it attended a gathering at the AFP College on Friday evening and spoke with those involved," an AFP spokesperson told the ABC. "The matter has been handed to the AFP to investigate further and take any action deemed necessary. The matter is currently being investigated."

It's not clear how many cadets were found to be at that particular party, nor how many are now facing investigation. The AFP stated, however, that it expected its members to comply with the law and health directions, and that those caught flouting the rules would be punished accordingly.

"Any breaches of the code of conduct will be dealt with in line with AFP professional standards framework," it said. "Any identified alleged breaches in behaviour by AFP recruits will be deemed totally unacceptable and will be subject to disciplinary actions."

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