Australian police has now officially said actors Natalie Portman and Sacha Baron Cohen had not broken the rules of COVID after photos of them boarding a boat in Sydney’s harbor appeared.
New South Wales sheriff department had earlier told the BBC publication that it was investigating the matter after members of the public expressed concern.
Police now say no further action will be taken against the two actors involved.
It comes as Covid’s strict limits were announced in Sydney on Friday.
Why No Further Action?
“Police officers working at the Northern Beaches Police Area Command got tipped about a group on the boat on Monday 5 July 2021, which may have violated the Public Health Orders (PHOs),” NSW police said in a statement.
“The police have reviewed this information and verified the activity, as well as the number of people in the group, but it turns out that they complied with the PHOs that were actuve at the time. There will be no further police action to be taken.”
Stay-At-Home Order
According to Sydney’s order to stay at home, people should leave their homes only for important reasons and essential services.
Australia’s largest city has been closed since June 26 to fight 400 cases of the Delta variant.
But the rate of birus transmission has continued to rise, officials said. It is in part because of abuses and improper implementation of stay-at-home orders by the residents.
The paparazzi photographs were published by The Daily Mail which showed Baron Cohen, Portman and her husband, choreographer Benjamin Millepied, on a boat ride on Sydney Harbour.
Special Permit To Celebrities To Visit Australia
Prior to Friday, people had no restrictions to gather outside in groups of 10 but it was only restricted for “essential” exercise.
Portman and Millepied have been in Sydney since January with the intention of making film. Baron Cohen and his Australian wife Isla Fisher also entered the country last year.
Since March 2020, Australia has closed its borders to almost all foreigners with a controversial policy that has also barred citizens and stranded their family members overseas from entering the country.
However, it has granted thousands of entry permits – including a host of celebrities, athletes and businessmen. This has provoked public outcry and controversy.
Criticism And Controversy
On Friday, police stepped up their patrols, sending 100 officers to the affected areas of southwestern Sydney.
However, locals have criticized police crackdown on poor people and other areas – saying police had not been deployed to Bondi, and to the more affluent areas of Sydney when the virus broke out in mid-June.
Authorities have strongly condemned allegations of discrimination.
New South Wales reported 44 new Delta variant cases on Friday, all in Sydney, the state capital.
Despite the two-week closure, the number of cases continued to rise with family transmission.
