Extraordinary moment pregnant mum is arrested and handcuffed in front of her two children over a Facebook post about lockdown – moments before she was due to have an ULTRASOUND
A pregnant woman has been arrested in her own home over a Facebook post allegedly inciting anti-lockdown protest in Victoria.
Zoe Lee, 28, was handcuffed in her lounge room in front of her children on Wednesday afternoon and charged with incitement.
Several officers entered the house in Ballarat, northwest of Melbourne, with a search warrant and began reading the young mother her rights.
‘Excuse me, incitement for what, what on Earth? I’m in my pyjamas, my two kids are here,’ she said in obvious confusion.
‘I have an ultrasound in an hour because I’m pregnant.’
Zoe Lee, 28, was handcuffed in her lounge room in front of her children on Wednesday afternoon and charged with incitement
Ms Lee’s alleged offending post linked to a since-deleted ‘Freedom Day Ballarat’ event she created for 11am on Saturday on Sturt Street.
‘Anyone from Ballarat please join us in our fight for freedom and human rights!’ she wrote on Sunday with a link to the event page.
The increasingly hysterical mother insisted she wasn’t breaking any laws by creating and then promoting the event.
‘Actually you are, that’s why we’re arresting you in relation to incitement,’ police replied.
Ms Lee offered to delete the post as her boyfriend James Timmins tried to mediate while cradling their infant child in his arms.
‘How about she just doesn’t do the event? It’s not like she’s done it, she made a post,’ he said.
Police were unmoved, telling her: ‘You’ve already committed the offence.’
Mother-of-two Ms Lee with her boyfriend James Timmins, who filmed her being arrested
Ms Lee allegedly created this event for Saturday at 11am on Sturt Street in Ballarat
Ms Lee was by this point crying so much she could barely protest ‘I didn’t realise I was doing anything wrong’.
Police said they would seize all electronic devices in the house including those belonging to Mr Timmins and Ms Lee’s sister.
Regional Victorian town like Ballarat are spared the ultra-tough Stage Four lockdown but are still in Stage Three, making it illegal for more than two people to gather.
Police consider any protests to be in breach of these rules and have proved willing to arrest anyone organising or encouraging any gatherings.
Ms Lee’s event coincided with what coronavirus conspiracy theorists and general anti-lockdown activists have dubbed ‘Freedom Day’.
Similar events have popped up around Melbourne as anger grows over its draconian Stage Four lockdown that won’t end until at least September 13.
Police have vowed to quash the protests after weekend demonstrations in Dandenong and have arrested several other organisers.
Ms Lee’s alleged offending post linked to a since-deleted ‘Freedom Day Ballarat’ event she created
Ms Lee offered to delete the post but was told she had already committed an offence
Three police officers even came to the door of a woman in southeast Melbourne and warned her about the possibility of incitement charges.
She had hours earlier made Facebook and Instagram posts encouraging Melburnians to take their allowed one hour of exercise at the same time.
Ms Lee’s ‘peaceful protest’ even stressed that attendees follow restrictions like wearing masks and social distancing ‘so we don’t get arrested’.
‘As some of you may have seen, the government has gone to extreme measures and are using scare tactics through the media to prevent the Melbourne protest,’ the event page read.
Here in Ballarat we can be a voice for those is Stage Four lockdowns. We can be seen and hopefully make a difference!
‘End lockdowns! Stand for human rights! We live in a free country!’