An Australian couple in the state of Victoria was hit with substantial fines after posting vacation photos on Facebook, where it looked like they had disobeyed coronavirus lockdown orders.
Police showed up at the couple’s home and issued each of them each a $1,652 AUD ($1057.70 USD) fine for the images, Gizmodo reports. However, Jaz and Garry Mott’s photos were originally taken in June 2019, but they only shared them earlier this month. Australia’s states have issued some of the most excessive fines for violating quarantine in the world, with penalties potentially reaching tens of thousands of dollars when not adhering to social distancing and non-essential travel rules.
Authorities later revoked the couple’s fines when the police learned that the photos were taken last summer and not over Easter weekend. “On occasion, errors will be made however that is why a review process exists to ensure instances such as these are identified and rectified,” the police told Australia’s Seven News network.
According to Jaz Mott, a senior police officer “basically told me not to post any more photos while the lockdown is in place," she told The Daily Mail. Police said that while they aren’t targeting social media to discover people breaking quarantine and suggested that the Mott’s fines were a result of a report from the public, and that people should use “common sense” in regards to social distancing laws.
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