NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Covid 19 coronavirus: Infected man who escaped Stamford Plaza hotel questions diagnosis and evidence on his trip

Anna Leask
By Anna Leask
Senior Journalist - crime and justice·NZ Herald·
8 Jul, 2020 10:50 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The Stamford Plaza where a 32-year-old man who was there under Covid-19 managed isolation escaped and went to local Countdown supermarket. Photo / Dean Purcell

The Stamford Plaza where a 32-year-old man who was there under Covid-19 managed isolation escaped and went to local Countdown supermarket. Photo / Dean Purcell

The man who has tested positive for Covid-19 after absconding from isolation to visit a central Auckland supermarket has questioned the evidence around his diagnosis and escape.

The 32-year-old says he feels "totally fine" but "very stressed" about the situation he is in.

The man who arrived from India on July 3 and, as is the rules, went straight into managed isolation at the Stamford Plaza Hotel.

On Tuesday evening he left the hotel without permission, slipping through a gap in the fencing and evading security staff.

He was away for 70 minutes.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Police have established that he spent about 20 minutes at the Countdown in Victoria Street West.

But it is yet to be confirmed by authorities exactly what he did in the 50 minutes before and after he went to the supermarket. The minister in charge of managed isolation and quarantine Megan Woods said he stood outside a store to tap into free Wi-Fi and made a 22-minute long phone call.

His Covid-19 test came back positive yesterday.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Police have confirmed he will be charged, and that he will receive a summons to appear in court at a later date.

Security at mandatory quarantine and isolation hotels are being reviewed as a result of the man's actions.

The Herald contacted the man this morning, who said he questioned the version of events around his escape and diagnosis, which was released by the Health Minister and police.

The man refused - repeatedly - to say why he left the hotel, what he did during the time he was away and what he thought of his diagnosis and the criminal charge he would face.

Discover more

Opinion

Derek Cheng: Another breach; a blot on the Govt's record and a reprieve for National

08 Jul 05:00 PM
New Zealand

Motorcyclist crashes into house in Mt Roskill, critically injured

08 Jul 03:46 AM
New Zealand

'Zero tolerance' for predators in Manurewa, councillor says

08 Jul 04:36 AM
New Zealand

The great escape: Covid man's outing, including shopping trip, selfies and 22-minute phone call

08 Jul 05:00 PM
ESCAPE
ESCAPE

The man said he had been given "no evidence" that his Covid-19 test was positive.

When asked why he felt the could leave the hotel, he said several times: "No one told me anything".

Asked about his health, he said he felt "fine".

"I'm totally healthy and fine...," he said.

He said his reasons for leaving managed isolation were "different from the reasons" given by officials but he refused to elaborate on that despite being asked multiple times.

"I don't know what's going on, I am pretty confused... the police know the facts, I have told them everything, I am complying with them."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Despite claiming he had "no evidence" he was infected with Covid-19 the man said people with the deadly condition were "human".

"We are also people," he said.

He is the second person to abscond from central Auckland hotels this week.

A 43-year-old woman absconded from the Pullman Hotel on foot shortly before 6.20pm on Saturday and was located soon after a couple of blocks away at 8pm on Anzac Avenue.

The five police officers who came into contact with the woman while capturing her must now have Covid-19 tests and will also have to self-isolate.

She is appearing in the Auckland District Court on Monday.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The man refused to speak about whether he felt he had put the public at risk by leaving the hotel before he hung up on the Herald.

Countdown's corporate affairs general manager Kiri Hannifin told RNZ that the man "did a lot of browsing in the health and beauty aisle" while inside the supermarket.

He even stopped and posed for selfies in the aisles, Hannifin said. "He had a phone with him, and he was taking photos with the phone.... Yes selfies, that's right."

Countdown said the man spent 14 minutes in the beauty aisle and six more minutes wandering around the supermarket.

He used a self-service checkout and purchased toothpaste, body wash and razors.

Officials are still piecing together CCTV footage to work out the man's movements between the Countdown supermarket and the hotel.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Government minister Megan Woods told RNZ they were aware the man stood outside a store to tap into free Wi-Fi and made a 22-minute long phone call.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand|crime

'He should have been prosecuted': Couple's call for justice after police assault

19 Jun 11:00 PM
New Zealand

Celeste Howell and Anaru Mano want justice.

New Zealand

'Employment process' under way for police officer who beat children with belt

19 Jun 10:52 PM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

'He should have been prosecuted': Couple's call for justice after police assault

'He should have been prosecuted': Couple's call for justice after police assault

19 Jun 11:00 PM

Police: There was evidence to prosecute the officer, but it wasn't in the public interest.

Celeste Howell and Anaru Mano want justice.

Celeste Howell and Anaru Mano want justice.

'Employment process' under way for police officer who beat children with belt

'Employment process' under way for police officer who beat children with belt

19 Jun 10:52 PM
Stabbing in Hawke’s Bay, one taken to hospital with serious wounds

Stabbing in Hawke’s Bay, one taken to hospital with serious wounds

19 Jun 10:45 PM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP