Police have reportedly seized the mobile phones of three Queensland women who allegedly lied about their travel to Melbourne before returning to Queensland and testing positive to coronavirus, sparking fears of a second wave of the virus in the state.
Two of the women have been fined $4000 each for breaching Public Health rules by making false declarations on their border paperwork. The 19-year-olds have become Queensland’s first positive cases outside quarantine since May and led to Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s closure of the state’s border to Sydney yesterday.
Olivia Winnie Muranga (pictured, left) – a cleaner at Parklands Christian College, which is now closed following a confirmed COVID-19 case – was tested on Monday after falling ill and returned a positive result. Her travelling companion, Diana Lasu (pictured, right) was tested the following day and also returned a positive result.
A third woman – reportedly a sister of one of the two women – has refused to give Police details of her travel and possible contact points.
It’s hoped the reported seizure of the women’s phones by police will help to shed light on their movements and allow health authorities to accurately contract trace in relation to the positive cases.
Queensland Police Commissioner, Katarina Carroll described the women’s actions as “criminal” in a press conference today.
“I am very disappointed with them at this stage. They went to extraordinary lengths to be deceitful and deceptive and, quite frankly, criminal in their behaviour and it has put the community at risk,” she said.
It’s believed detectives from Queensland Police State Crime Command visited the third woman at her Logan home as part of the investigation. It’s understood she has not tested positive to COVID-19 but is in isolation at home.
