French Police Issue About 480,000 Fines Over COVID-19 Lockdown Violations - Minister

French Police Issue About 480,000 Fines Over COVID-19 Lockdown Violations - Minister

French police have handed out about 480,000 fines to people found in breach of home confinement rules since the start of a lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of the new coronavirus, the interior minister told France Info on Monday

PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th April, 2020) French police have handed out about 480,000 fines to people found in breach of home confinement rules since the start of a lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of the new coronavirus, the interior minister told France Info on Monday.

"Since the beginning [of the lockdown], there have been about 48,000 violations out of 8.2 million inspections," Christophe Castaner said, noting that the restrictions were being observed in general.

According to the minister, the French are among the most disciplined in terms of self-isolation.

Fines for violating the stay at home order in the country range from 135 Euros ($146) to 3,750 euros for repeat violations registered within a month.

France went into quarantine on March 17, with people only allowed to make essential trips.

As of Sunday, the COVID-19 case count in the country has surpassed 70,000. Of these, over 8,000 patients have died and more than 16,000 people have recovered.