By Latrishka Thomas
There have been a total of 173 violations of state of emergency regulations in Antigua, and three in Barbuda, bringing the total to 176 since they were implemented three months ago.
On March 27, the government declared a state of emergency, which allowed it to establish a curfew and a law stipulating the mandatory wearing of facemasks, as well as lock down of beaches, bars, gyms and more.
And according to statistics provided by the police, as of Wednesday, 60 persons have been arrested for failing to wear facemasks, 98 have failed to comply with the curfew, 12 have violated the restriction on social gatherings, two have been arrested for failing to comply with motor vehicle restrictions, and one person has been arrested for resisting arrest, battery on police and obstruction, in Antigua.
On the sister island, there have been two arrests for failure to wear a mask and one for failure to comply with the curfew restriction.
Eighty-two percent of the perpetrators were males.
Curfew violations have had the biggest spike since mid-April when 76 persons were arrested.
Of the 176 arrests, 105 persons were convicted of a crime, three were sentenced, and 12 matters were withdrawn.
The highest number of convictions (57) was for violating the curfew.
On June 12, the state of emergency was extended to July 31.
At present, there is a mandatory curfew between 11pm and 5am applicable to all non-essential workers.
Bars, gyms and hotels have been allowed to open once certain protocols are in place
The beaches are now open every day from 5am to 7pm.
Tennis and swimming are the only sports that are allowed, once protocols are in place to include social distancing rules.
Churches are free to conduct rituals, including baptisms, confirmations, weddings and funerals with social distancing rules enforced, and while wearing masks.