Victoria saw record numbers of coronavirus snitching last month, during the height of the state’s tough lockdown restrictions.
In April, Victoria Police received 102,034 calls, up from 70,983 in March. That’s a 30% jump in calls.
These aren’t 000 calls, but rather non-emergency calls to the Police Assistance Line, which is more-or-less used to dob someone in.
“Before the pandemic, our most common reports were in relation to the theft of a motor car, theft from a motor car, lost property and theft, and we would receive around 2,500 calls a day,” Inspector Steve Towers said in a statement.
Now, the line is getting anywhere between 3,500 and 11,500 calls a day, almost all of which are to do with suspected coronavirus lockdown breaches.
Victoria Police even brought on new staff in March to cope with the spike in calls.
But it wasn’t until April 1 that the state entered Stage 3 lockdowns, which included a limit on gatherings of more than two people.
“Although the service wasn’t set up to assist in statewide emergencies, we’ve managed to make a real difference, such as during the bushfires when we recorded residents who were looking to be returned to Mallacoota,” Towers added.
In Victoria, people can still be fined $1,652 for attending large gatherings.
So far, more than 5,600 fines have been dished to people caught ignoring lockdown restrictions. This totals more than $8 million.
That includes a children’s birthday party, some mates playing video games, and a cricket match in a park.
None of these fines have been challenged in court.
Australia might have a pretty good track record of following lockdown restrictions, but these stats show we’re also a nation of dobbers.
