Woman charged after escape from isolation

A woman who scaled two fences to escape from managed isolation facility has been charged.

The 43-year-old fled on foot from the Pullman Hotel shortly before 6.20pm on Saturday.

She was located a couple of blocks away by police on Anzac Ave at 8pm.

Police said in a statement last night that she was medically assessed while in Police custody and was deemed fit to return to managed isolation.

She is now facing a charge breach of section 26(1) of the Covid-19 Public Health Response Act 2020 and has been summonsed to appear before the Auckland District Court as soon as her managed isolation is finished.

One of the five officers who dealt with the woman, who has tested negative, is in self-isolation pending the result of a covid test.

Cabinet Minister Megan Woods, who has ministerial oversight of the quarantine and managed isolation facilities, said the woman had been in a common outside area that was fenced off.

“My understanding is there was some temporary low fencing indicating a closed space with a permanent fence about 1.82m (six feet) high behind that,” Woods told the Herald.

There had been no failure of Government procedures, she said.

“We are not setting up patrolled perimeters here . . . This was a hotel. This is a clearly marked area where it’s a given you shouldn’t be leaving.

“We’re not putting up unclimbable walls at these hotels. We’re asking those rejoining the team of five million to follow the rules.”

She said people in the facilities should play their part.

“We didn’t all have a policeman or a member of the NZ Defence Force outside our front doors during the five weeks we made our sacrifices.”

She said the fact that the woman was captured within two hours of leaving showed that the proper processes were in place.

“She didn’t simply wander out the door . . . It is not easy to leave these facilities. Walls have to be climbed.”

The Government’s head of managed isolation, Air Commodore Darryn Webb, praised the “excellent work by police staff” who located the woman as quickly as possible”.

“We recognise that managed isolation can be stressful for people who come to it with a variety of circumstances. However, wilfully leaving our facilities cannot and will not be tolerated.”