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Church leaders at centre of Mt Roskill Covid-19 sub-cluster warned they could be charged if meetings continue

September 10, 2020

Police visited the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship last month when a prayer meeting was held during Level 3 restrictions.

Leaders at an Auckland church at the centre of a Covid-19 sub-cluster have been warned by police they could face charges if they meet in breach of alert level restrictions.

Officers were called to a prayer meeting at the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship church on August 15, when Auckland was under Alert Level 3, and told the group to disperse.

Police also provided education on the restrictions at the time, and verbally warned any further gatherings could lead to prosecution.

In Auckland currently, gatherings must not exceed 10 people. 

Overall there have been 171 cases in the Auckland August cluster, a large number linked to the church.

Fourteen of them stem from a church member visiting a bereaved family.

There were six new cases today, all from the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship church.

The family then held a funeral where 48 people attended.

"Unfortunately one of the visitors to the household was infectious with Covid-19 and that has resulted in a number of cases in this smaller sub-cluster," Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said yesterday. 

Health Minister Chris Hipkins has said some members of the church haven't "accepted the science involved here", making contact tracing difficult. 

Dr Bloomfield has urged all members of the church community to get another Covid-19 test. 

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