There have been more than 1000 breaches of Alert Level 3 restrictions since it was introduced two weeks ago, including 50 in 24 hours this weekend.
Police were forced to take action on 1051 occasions in relation to breaches of either the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act or the Health Act since the introduction of Alert Level 3 restrictions up to 6pm yesterday, a police spokesperson told 1 NEWS.
Of these 1051 breaches, there have been 253 prosecutions, 723 warnings and 75 youth referrals issued, the spokesperson said.
Of those breaches, 50 of them occurred in the 24 hours from 6pm on Friday, May 8, to 6pm yesterday.
From 8am on Saturday to 8am on Sunday, police received 479 calls for potential breaches on the 105 number, New Zealand police assistant commissioner Richard Chambers told 1 NEWS.
He said while the vast majority of people were following lockdown rules, there have been a number of breaches involving large gatherings of people.
The incidents include a congregation of 24 people attending a backyard church service in Hamilton this morning, and around 35 people who attended a child's third birthday party yesterday.
New Zealand Police assistant commissioner Richard Chambers told 1 NEWS the vast majority of people were doing the right thing.
"We understand why people want to celebrate those occasions, but under Alert Level 3, it's not permitted," Mr Chambers said.
"The message is it's not the time to be complacent. The whole country's worked really, really hard to get to where we are and the vast majority are doing absolutely the right thing and that's fantastic, but the minority are letting us all down.
"It's not time to relax because if we do, the consequences for our country and for the safety of everybody could be severe."
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