'No parties, no excuses' under Alert Level 3: Police

A police and council investigation is underway and it is likely that charges will follow under...
Reports of mass gatherings of 10 or more people were being prioritised. Photo: Getty Images
Police have received 1200 public reports of people breaching the alert level 3 restrictions.

Of the 1200 reports 685 were received in the 24 hours between 6pm May 1 and 6pm May 2, police said today.

Police have taken enforcement action against 514 people for breaches of either the Health Act or the Civil Defence Emergency Act since alert level 3 came into force.

Of the 514 breaches there have between 135 prosecutions and 342 warnings.

In the 24 hours between 6pm 1 May and 6pm 2 May police took enforcement action against 112 people.

In a statement police urged people to resist the temptation to socialise in gatherings that would breach the restrictions.

"Under no circumstances should anyone be having a party under the Alert Level 3 restrictions," acting Assistant Commissioner Scott Fraser said.

"Such behaviour could waste all the sacrifices made by our team of five million over the last five weeks.

"Now is not the time to be complacent and we know from the volume of people reporting these parties and gatherings, that they don't want to lose all the gains made in the collective effort to beat Covid-19," he said.

"No parties, no excuses."

Reports of mass gatherings of 10 or more people were being prioritised.

"Holding a party in the current environment is in breach of the Health Act and where appropriate enforcement action will be taken, this could be against the party hosts and the attendees," Fraser said.

Most Kiwis were acting responsibly and sticking to the rules by staying local, travelling within their region and physically distancing in public, he said.

Suspected breaches can be reported by phoning 105, contacting police online via the 105 form, calling Crimestoppers anonymously or in emergencies, calling 111.