A Western Australian man who pleaded guilty to assaulting police at the NSW-Victorian border near Eden has had his sentencing delayed due to him being in isolation.
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Last week, Reynolds Dube, from Alkimos, pleaded guilty to two charges of not complying with a COVID-19 related direction, as well as charges of using offensive language near a public place or school, and assaulting and resisting an officer.
He is being held in custody at the South Coast Correctional Centre and was expected to face Bega Local Court on Tuesday, September 15 to be sentenced.
But in court on Tuesday Magistrate Doug Dick said the 27-year-old could not appear over audio visual link as he was being kept in isolation after "showing symptoms".
Magistrate Dick did not elaborate on what the symptoms were, nor state Dube had been diagnosed with any illness.
In court documents police said Dube tried to cross the border at Albury on September 1, then again twice in one night on September 7 - first at Rockton then the Princes Hwy at Timbillica, south of Eden - without a valid permit each time.
After Dube was refused entry at Timbillica and directed to return to Victoria he became aggressive and wrestled with several police officers the court heard.
In Bega Local Court last week Dube represented himself, originally pleading not guilty before changing his pleas to guilty. However, even after he changed his pleas he continued to claim he did not assault a police officer or resist arrest.
On Tuesday, Magistrate Dick refused bail and adjourned the sentencing to September 29, for which Dube would appear over AVL.
Following inquiries by the Bega District News, a Corrective Services NSW spokesperson confirmed there were currently no active cases of COVID-19 among inmates in NSW prisons.
"A 27-year-old inmate at South Coast Correctional Centre was tested for COVID-19 on Tuesday, September 8, but has since been cleared. The inmate remains in isolation as a precaution," the spokesperson said.
"The safety of all staff and inmates is our number one priority, and it will remain at the forefront of our decision-making processes while COVID-19 continues to pose a risk.
"We have long-standing safety practices in place to prevent and control infectious and communicable diseases in our prisons and other facilities.
"All fresh inmate custodies are tested on entry for COVID-19 and quarantined for a period of 14 days to help reduce the risk of the virus being introduced into our facilities.
"All inmates who show possible symptoms of the virus are isolated, provided with a surgical mask and tested promptly."
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