COVID-19: Lagos court fines 65 lawbreakers N130,000 for violating curfew

The Lagos Special Offences (Mobile) Court has fined 65 traffic lawbreakers N20,000 each, totaling N135,000, for violating ‘COVID-19 Midnight Curfew’ on New Year’s Day in the state.

In a statement titled, ‘LASG arraigns 65 offenders for violating curfew on January 1’, Chairman of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences (Enforcement) Unit, Shola Jejeloye, said the 65 offenders were arrested in Lekki, Surulere and Ikeja during a midnight enforcement operations in the early hours of January 1, 2021.

“The Court fined the 65 offenders N20,000 each with additional one hour ‘Community Service’ after they had pleaded ‘Guilty’ to the one-count charge of breaching the curfew order, while the owners of the 11 impounded vehicles were fined N50,000 each,” the statement added.

Jejeloye said 11 vehicles were also impounded for being on the road during the period, stressing that “the State Government is determined to sanction any person or organisation caught breaching ‘Public Health Regulations and Protocols’ on the COVID-19 pandemic”.

The Chairman said, “If we don’t do the needful, the spread of the disease will continue unabated. We must also be conscious of the fact that the new strain of the virus spreads faster than the old strain, as such the Lagos State Government will continue to insist and encourage Lagosians to obey all the COVID-19 stipulated protocols.”

He, therefore, urged the citizens to always wear face masks at all times, wash their hands with soap and running water or use hand sanitiser while practising physical distancing in compliance with the COVID-19 safety guidelines.