Coronavirus conspiracy theorist Eve Black has been dramatically arrested while again refusing to give police her details at a checkpoint.
Black last week gloated in a Facebook video about making it through a Melbourne covid-19 roadblock without telling officers where she was going.
Having enraged the of Australia, the 28-year-old tried the same trick again in the inner-city suburb of Carlton but was far less successful.
‘She was asked to provide her name and address which she refused to do. Police then directed her to produce her driver’s licence and explain her reason for travel, which she also refused to comply with,’ Victoria Police said.
‘This led to police arresting her. During the arrest, police were forced to break the woman’s car window as she refused to speak to them, wind down her window, or step out of the vehicle.’
Eve Black, from Melbourne, shared footage on Thursday of herself driving past an officer at a COVID-19 police barricade
Black was arrested at 1.55pm on Wednesday and charged with failing to hand over her driver’s licence, not giving her name and address, breaching coronavirus public health orders, and traffic offences.
She was released with a summons to face court at a later date.
Black filmed and uploaded to Facebook her first, successful, attempt at gaming the system last Thursday.
When the officer asked her where she was headed and why she was attempting to leave, Ms Black simply told him she didn’t need to share that information.
The officer eventually waved her through as she sped off laughing and celebrating.
Ms Black has been widely condemned after posting the video, and could now find herself in trouble with the law after catching the attention of Victoria’s assistant police commissioner.
‘Our members are out there all day and all night working incredibly hard to keep our community safe,’ Assistant Commissioner Rick Nugent said on Friday.
‘This was a selfish and childish act… it was ridiculous, it was unnecessary.
‘If that woman lived in that area or had a good reason to be in that area, she would be allowed through.
‘If not, she’s breaking the law.’
Mr Nugent said police would be investigating the matter and issuing her with a fine if she was found breaching coronavirus restrictions.
‘I’m sure she’ll be looking forward to a knock on the door from Victoria Police members,’ Police Minister Lisa Neville said.
‘Whether you are trying to get through a roadblock, trying to get away with not wearing a mask, whether you’re trying to have a party, Victoria Police will be there.’
Ms Black – who has previously stated COVID-19 is a ‘SCAMdemic’ – has deleted all her social media accounts in the wake of the video.
Despite the widespread backlash, the Melburnian said she regretted ‘nothing’.
‘I have privatised my acc (sic) because I have better things to do than be a punching bag for your fear,’ she wrote online.
‘I regret nothing, I’m just tired of the abuse and threats.
‘Wake up, sleeper,’ she wrote with an emoji of a sheep.
In the viral video, Ms Black asked the officer whether she’d ‘disturbed the peace’ by trying to leave her suburb.
‘No,’ the officer responded. ‘I just asked what your reason for leaving today is.’
Ms Black responded: ‘I don’t need to tell you that. I don’t know you.’
Initially, the officer persisted. ‘Where have you come from,’ he asked again.
‘I don’t need to answer your questions. Have I committed a crime? Have I committed a crime?’ she asked twice.
Instead of answering her question, the officer waved Ms Black through the checkpoint.
Ms Black said she didn’t ‘regret’ sharing the video which has since been heavily criticised
In the now viral video, Ms Black is seen speeding off while laughing and celebrating
‘Just keep going,’ he said as he let her and her passenger drive past.
Ms Black admitted she was ‘nervous as heck’ as she approached the checkpoint, but encouraged her friends and family to ‘know their rights’ during lockdown.
‘I just read from the sheet and he could obviously see it wasn’t worth the trouble,’ she explained.
The sheet in question explained the exact phrases people attempting to leave lockdown should use when stopped by officers.
Ms Black was also heavily criticised by Former Treasurer Wayne Swan who said she wouldn’t be laughing if she ended up in ICU.
‘It makes me angry watching that, it’s dumb and disrespectful,’ he said on The Today Show on Friday morning.
‘At the end she says she feels good. Well, she won’t feel too good in ICU.’
Mr Swan said 99 per cent of Australians were following the rules but there were a few who refused to protect their own safety.
‘There are some people who don’t get it and some people who think they’re in some weird television show,’ he said.
‘But they are playing with people’s lives. People like that should have the book thrown at them.’
When a police officer asked her where she was headed and why she was attempting to leave, Ms Black simply told him she didn’t need to share that information
Her run-in with police comes as Victoria records 300 new coronavirus cases and six deaths – the state’s highest ever – on Friday.
There are nine vehicle checkpoints and a number of mobile patrols set up by Victoria Police across key roads in Melbourne and Mitchell Shire in a bid to enforce the latest lockdown.
Residents living in the locked-down areas are only allowed to leave their homes for four approved reasons – food, exercise, work or study, or medical care.
Those who breach orders will be hit with a $1,652 fine with 262 infringements already given out at checkpoints since July 8.
Phillip Gallo, from Rose Lawyers and conveyances told Daily Mail Australia police had the right to fine those who weren’t wearing a mask under the powers associated with Victoria’s State of Emergency.
‘It’s not technically a law that’s been legislated but it’s under the power scheme of emergency,’ he said.
‘The government has certain powers to make directives and enforce that.’
He said people who refuse to wear a mask can be fined under the current restrictions.
COVID-19 checkpoints have been set up in and around Victoria in an attempt to stem the spread of the virus