Zara Holland gets away with a £4.5k fine for breaking Barbados Covid rules

Zara Holland has escaped jail and been given a £4,500 fine after breaking Barbadian Covid rules.

The former Love Islander had been facing a year in jail or an £18,000 fine for allegedly trying to flee the island with boyfriend Elliot Love after he tested positive for Covid.

However, in court today she was given the reduced fine, despite the intervention of Barbados’ prime minister, Mia Mottley, who warned she was prepared to take “necessary action” against Holland.

‘I believe that by far the majority of tourists are complying, but the handful who have chosen, literally to ignore our morals, ignore our customs, ignore our laws and guidelines, then you must equally be held accountable with the respect to what you have to face coming out of this country,” Mottley said.

A petition signed by over 4,000 people calling for Barbados to jail the pair was ultimately unable to sway the country’s legal system.

Rules in Barbados say that visitors must isolate until they have had two negative test results – and not to try and escape to the UK.

Holland had previously apologised for the rule breach, telling Barbados Today: “I firstly want to apologise to the entire country of Barbados for what has been a massive mix up and misunderstanding during my most recent stay.

“I am currently working with the local authorities to rectify any issues on my part and will issue an update and full statement which I think is the only right thing to do to the Government and citizens of Barbados.

“I have been a guest of this lovely island in excess of 20 years and would never do anything to jeopardise an entire nation that I have nothing but love and respect for and which has treated me as a family.”

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